Halo 3: a tale of Hunters and Demons
by Shadythief
Summary: The Covenant has shattered, it's remnants assaulting Earth relentlessly. Meanwhile, a darker, far more ancient threat prepares to attack all. Can Samus Aran and the Master Chief save not only the Human race, but the entire galaxy? Read on to find out! A continuation of Halo 2: return of Samus.
1. Prolouge

**Hello all! Well, here we are, the next story. As I've said before, I will be writing on for each Halo from 2-4, and eventually 5 when we learn more about it. As usual, please leave a comment to tell me what you think, and favorite and follow if you enjoy what you read. Oh, and be sure to check out the first story if you haven't already! **

**I do not own Halo or Metroid, and if I did, this all would have happened long ago.**

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Prologue

Samus Aran was, for lack of a better word, bored. As she observed her dull, grey surroundings, she sighed to herself. The room she was in was tiny, just a square with a table and two chairs. All greys, with a large mirror on one side.

When she had first been thrown in here, she had found it amusing. The room was obviously a kind of interrogation room, used to question troubled individuals and war criminals. And while Samus thought she was neither, she really couldn't blame them in the end.

She thought back to what felt like just a few hours ago. The Arbiter, Johnson, Miranda and herself had just jumped out of slip space only to find a welcoming committee, a small fleet of Human ships waiting for them. They had been boarded, and Samus had been placed under arrest, after a short but heated argument. She had considered simply shooting her way out, but wanted to be on the nice side of the 'new' Human race. The Arbiter had also been arrested, with Johnson and Miranda escorted out as well.

Her ship had been compounded, and they were all now aboard one of the larger ships. She hadn't caught the name, but it seemed like it was some kind of frigate. They had been taken and separated, which was the last Samus saw of any of them. Then, they had chucked her in here, and that had been hours ago.

She looked at the wall length mirror and rolled her eyes, hoping whoever was watching saw it. She knew it was a one way mirror, and when she had first come in, she had been trying to talk to the people on the other side. She had no clue if they heard, and after an hour or so, had just ended up sitting in one of the chairs, occasionally throwing a look of malcontent at the mirror.

She observed her reflection, yet again. She took note of her pale skin, and her vibrant blonde hair. Her eyes were the most striking blue. The face in the mirror looked tired, and annoyed. But even with that look, Samus had to admit to herself she looked pretty good. She had a lean, athletic body, hugged tightly by her Zero Suit.

'Good for my age, anyway' she thought to herself humorously. She yawned and leaned back in the chair, stretching. She had no clue how long she had been in here, and she didn't even have Adam to tell her. They both had decided it would be smarter, and safer, for him to remain in the ship until all this was sorted.

She was getting to the point again where talking to the wall was sounding like a good idea, and was just getting up when the door creaked open, and someone entered the room. Samus froze, narrowing her eyes at the movement. It was the first interesting thing to happen in all this time. Had they finally remembered her? Or was this going to be her execution?

She was surprised to find that rather than a group of questioning scientists, or a firing squad of marines, it was a lone man who entered. He closed the door without looking at her, then walked over and took a seat. They both looked at each other in uncomfortable silence of awhile, Samus still in her frozen standing position.

Then, the man spoke.

"I'm surprised you aren't sitting. You've been through a lot these past few days" he chuckled, settling into his seat. Samus blinked, not sure how to process that. She slowly sat down and replied, remaining cautious and guarded.

"I've had enough rest recently" she muttered, eyes scanning the man over, trying to get a read on him.

He was an older man, with pale skin and no hair. He wore an amused expression, mixed with something akin to military professionalism. He wore a white uniform, adorned with various badges and medals. The fact he was someone high up in the UNSC was clear, but how high up she didn't know. She also had no clue what this would be about. Had it been scientists, she guessed they would ask about her ship, or suit. But he just sat, looking at her.

"I must say, it is an honor to meet one of our ancient ancestors, truly" he said quietly, humor gone. The look in his eye was replaced with admiration.

"Well now, let's not get too carried away. I'm not that old" she said, smiling. Whoever this person was, she liked them already. He chuckled, adjusting his position in his seat. He then did the oddest gesture, extending his hand across the table, palm open. She knew what it was, but was confused why he was doing it. She slowly extended her own hand, and took his, letting him shake it firmly.

"My name is Terrance Hood, Fleet Admiral of the UNSC. And you, are Samus Aran" he said, his smile as firm as his handshake. Samus was initially surprised he knew her name, but dismissed it quickly. Obviously they had spoken to the others first, saving her for last. She let go of his hand, still confused as to what was going on.

"Right, guess I'll jump right into it. I've spoken to the others from your ship, and frankly, they have told me some crazy things about you" he said, leaning forward.

"Like what? I have a crazy obsession with the color orange?" she replied, knowing that was not what he was saying.

He blinked, taking a pause before continuing.

"No, I was talking more about the powers you wield. Your armor and weapons." He said, expression unreadable. She smirked, wanting to roll her eyes. Here it was. The part where they asked to 'study' her gear, so they could use it too. Well, that hadn't worked out well for anyone in the history of ever, and Samus was sure as hell not going to let them have it either. But for now, she would play it cool.

"Oh, and I suppose you want to ask if I would let you take a peek at my tech?" she asked casually, playing it off. When the Admiral shook his head, she felt lost again.

"Here's the deal, Miss Aran. I am a powerful man, but not the only one. There are many in the UNSC that would love just that. But I have come to a different conclusion" he said, leaning back in his chair. Before she could form a response, he spoke again.

"Tell me, what is it you used to do. Before you were frozen?" he asked, expression still unreadable. She blinked, not expecting that at all.

"Uhh, I was a Bounty Hunter, Admiral" she replied, wondering where he was going with this.

"And, what kind of jobs did you take? Did you have a moral code in your line of work?"

"Well, not quite. I would never take a job that harmed innocent people, I was usually employed to assist soldiers and to take out threats that no normal person could destroy"

He remained silent awhile, his expression curious. He then got up, and slowly paced around the room. Samus remained seated, watching him.

"So you would say you 'fight for good?' Is that right?" he asked, continuing his lap of the tiny room.

"Well, in lack of better words, yes" she said.

"Interesting…" he muttered, sitting back down in his chair.

Samus was getting closer and closer to yelling at this point. She was a very direct person, and this whole dancing around the point was getting on her nerves. She was about to voice her annoyance when once again, the Admiral interrupted her thoughts.

"I heard that while you were on the Ring, you encountered one of our soldiers, the Master Chief" he said slowly.

"Yes I did, he's…one hell of a soldier" she said, frowning.

"And…do you know of his current location?" He asked, eyes alert. She shook her head, before retelling of the events that led to them coming together, and the events that split them up. She told of the demise of the Prophet of Regret, right up to them being separated by the Gravemind. The Admiral seemed mortified at the mentions of the Flood, but he kept his cool.

"Thankfully I know where he is. He was inside a Forerunner ship, but long range scanners showed that he jumped out as the ship descended. He landed in a jungle on the surface" he muttered. Samus could see that the Admiral was distressed by this news, and she knew why. It was highly unlikely he would survive a jump like that, and by the way everyone talked about him, she assumed he was a big deal around here.

"The Master Chief was more than a soldier. He was a legend, a mythic figure the troops would rally behind. He walked away from foes and odds that no man, or army, would have" he muttered. She chuckled, despite the grim conversation.

"Sounds like what I used to do" she said, glancing at her reflection.

"That was my thinking…Look Samus" he began, but Samus held up a hand. It was about time she finally got her say.

"No you look. I don't want to join your army, or become some lab rat. I came to Earth to see what Humanity had become after all these years. And I came to drop of the others. I already served in one army, I'm done" she near shouted, having risen from her seat. She turned her back on him, her reflection glaring angrily back at her. She was waiting for him to shout, or to simply leave, but he remained seated.

"I wasn't going to say either. I was going to give you another option"

She turned slowly, unable to keep the anger out of her face. His face remained calm, and in control of the situation. He slowly stood and walked over to her. She would have found it funny that she was half a foot taller than he was in any other situation.

"You were a hero of your time. All I ask is you be one now, in this time. I won't conscript you, or hand you over to our RnD. Instead, I ask that you do what you used to do. Take this 'job' from me, if you will" he told her, eyes unwavering.

"And, what would this job be?" she asked slowly. She was slowly putting the puzzle together, and was starting to get where this was going.

"Help us win this war, Samus. Help save Humanity once again" he said quietly. She could see the worry in his eyes, his demeanor finally cracking.

She looked at him silently awhile, watching his expressions. She sighed heavily, before responding.

"Do I get to walk away after all this?"

"If we win this war, and you don't want to be here, I guarantee you will be free to go" he replied, a faint smile breaking on his lips.

She looked away, thinking. Then she took a step back, and held out her hand.

"You have a deal, Admiral" she told him, shaking his hand when he took hers. His smile widened, and he took a step back from her. He gave her a salute, which she returned as best she could.

"Well, if you would follow me then, I'm going to reunite you with your ship and sergeant Johnson" he told her, turning and making his way out.

Samus followed closely behind. They entered a long corridor, and the Admiral indicated the way to go. As she followed him, she glanced at the personal that they passed, all of them giving her odd looks. She couldn't blame them. For one thing she was half a foot taller than they all were. Not to mention her choice of fashion. While they all wore olive drab, she was in her skin tight Zero Suit. She was more than aware of the looks some of the men were giving, but she focused on following the Admiral.

They soon arrived in a massive hanger, the place she had first been brought. She quickly spotted her ship, and a familiar face in front of it. As they walked up, Johnson cracked into a smile. He strode up to them, saluting Hood and nodding at Samus.

"It's nice to see the pretty lady got out" he chuckled, giving her a wink.

She smirked, letting out a laugh. Johnson so far was the best person she had met so far. What could she say, he was charming.

"Yep, no foreseeable strings attached" she told him, glancing around. She noticed the Admiral had vanished, but she dismissed the thought. He probably had very important Admiral stuff to do.

"Well, go grab what you need inside, and then were going to be taking a ride in that ship there" he said, pointing to a Pelican with soldiers gathered around it. She nodded and made her way inside.

As soon as she stepped in, Adam appeared on the command table, his face wrinkled with worry.

"Samus what happened? Are we being kept here?" he started asking, more questions coming. She held up a hand, and began explaining as she moved throughout the ship, checking to see if everything was the way she left it.

Adam listened quietly, nodding to himself every once in a while. When she had finished, she strolled over and pulled him out of the ship, inserting him into the slot at the back of her head. She set the ship's computers to automatic, meaning she could call on it when she needed, and after giving it one last look over, made her way back out. Johnson nodded and started making his way over to the Pelican, Samus in tow.

"So what happened to The Arbiter? Miranda?" she asked him. The thought had been bugging her for a while now. Johnson chuckled, glancing over his shoulder at her.

"Miranda is fine, gone back to her regular duties, but as for tall, dark and ugly…"

As they strode toward the Pelican, something huge walked out the back hatch. Large, and covered in gray armor, The Arbiter, also known as Thel Vadam, was an imposing sight, especially to the marines gathered nearby, who gave him a wide berth. He strode toward them both, his mandibles forming somewhat of a smile, as if that was possible.

"Johnson, Samus. It is good to see you both. Are we prepared?" he asked, his voice monotone and level. Johnson nodded, and beckoned the marines over to him. Samus moved closer, questions on her tongue.

"So how is it they haven't killed you yet?" She asked him, hands on her hips. The Arbiter's body rumbled, the equivalent of a chuckle.

"The Admiral and I discussed many things, and we both came to the conclusion that Humans and Sangheili won't be able to win this fight alone." He informed her, then went on to elaborate the temporary treaty they had agreed upon. Samus was about to ask more when Johnson's booming voice interrupted.

"Alright marines, listen up! We have word of the Master Chief's location, and we're going in to find him! Now I'm sure some of you may have noticed our two odd guests, but they are to be treated as if they're your commanding officers, do you hear me marines?"

The marines all called out various affirmatives, though more than one gave Samus and Thel strange looks. Johnson then began ordering them into the Pelican, and preparing for lift off. Samus activated her armor, save the helmet, getting more than a few gasps from the soldiers. She chuckled to herself, slightly enjoying how awesome she must seem, before jumping in and grabbing a seat.

The marine next to her gave a smile, one of few to not be giving her looks of suspicion. He extended a hand, waiting for her to take it.

"I'm Carmine ma'am, and I just want to say I'm glad for the extra firepower you're bringing" he said brightly. He looked quite young, no more than mid-twenties. He got several wolf whistles from his fellow soldiers, but she ignored them, smiling at him instead.

"Thanks kid, glad I can help"

He didn't seem to get annoyed at being called a kid, and instead smiled more and nodded. A loud voice interrupted all chatter.

"Alright marines, better buckle up and hang on to your helmets, because we're going in!" he shouted, giving the signal for the Pelican Pilot to take off. Samus felt the craft shudder to life, then the thrust as it moved out into space, and headed for the surface. She checked her weapons were online, her cannon giving off a glow as she switched between every one of her main weapons. Once she was satisfied, she looked out towards the front, at the surface of Earth getting ever closer. She sighed, eyes narrowing in thought.

'Looks like I'm saving you once again John, let hope this is the last time…'


	2. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone, it is I! Sorry this took awhile, a mixture of IRl probelms, and a teeny bit of writers block. Hopefully I'm over it now, and can continue writing for you guys. Please leave a comment on what you think, and favorite and follow if you enjoy.**

**I dont own Halo or Metroid.**

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Chapter One

"Don't make a girl a promise, if you know you can't keep it…"

John felt life slowly return to him, his eyes opening groggily. He twitched his fingers and toes, making sure nothing was broken. Pain flared up, and it took all his willpower not to shout, but he could move, and nothing seemed broken. He became vaguely aware of voices all around him, so he decided to remain still, at least until he could move properly, and he knew who was with him. His vision was slowly clearing up, and it was when a face moved in closer, he knew he was safe.

Sargent Johnson started into his visor, his expression full of sadness and disappointment. He sighed, cigar smoke billowing onto John's visor. Johnson then stood up, turning to face the marines around him.

"Radio for V-TOL. Heavy lift gear…we're not leaving him here." He muttered, peering down at John again. After hearing this, John decided to act. He reached up, pain flaring at the movement, and grabbed Johnson's arm.

"Yeah, you're not." He grunted, slowly hoisting himself up. Johnsons face changed from sadness to shock, and then he cracked into a smile.

"Crazy fool. One of these days you're gonna land on something as stubborn as you are!" He chuckled. "And I don't do bits and pieces."

John chuckled quietly, glad to see his friend again. But as he stood, he remembered how he came to be here, and who he had to leave behind. He slowly reached around his helmet and pulled out Cortana's chip, gazing down at it. His visor hid his expression, but he felt horrible. Johnson looked down at it too, eyes turning sad again.

"Where is she chief?" He asked quietly.

"She stayed behind." John muttered, placing the chip back in his skull. He glanced around their surroundings. They all were in a dense jungle, a lot of greens present. John blended right in. Johnson also looked around, before waving a technician over.

"Corporal, make it quick." He grunted, turning away and pulling his rifle out. It seems they are expecting company. This immediately put John on edge. The technician hurried over, pulling out a small scanning tool, and began running it over his body.

"Sorry sir, just need to check your armor is still functional." He said, seemingly in a hurry himself.

John was about to reply when a shimmer caught his attention. His head snapped up, eyes searching for the source of the movement. For a moment, he thought his head was still rattled from his crash landing. But then he saw it again. A shimmer in the air, slowly making its way towards them. John knew what it was instantly, and knew he needed to act.

Ignoring his body's pain, he rushed forward, yanking a pistol of one of the marine's belts as he did. He closed the distance before any of them could blink. He punched the invisible figure, who materialized out of thin air, causing several yells from the marines behind him. The Elite was huge, but that didn't bother him. He dived, tackling it and pinning it to the ground. He then aimed the pistol right inside its mouth, and prepared to fire.

"John stop!"

He froze. He knew that voice, he had heard it before. It was a more recent voice in his life, but one he knew all too well. He slowly turned his head, making eye contact with Samus Aran.

She stood not too far away, armored up with the exception of her helmet. Her bright blue eyes seemed to pierce into his, and it took all his willpower not to look away. Her mouth was slightly open, and she looked like she had been about to rush in herself. She slowly made her way over, her eyes never leaving his. He knew she couldn't really see his eyes, but it sure felt like it.

"The Arbiter's with me. And I'd appreciate it if you both didn't kill each other." she said slowly. The corners of her mouth turned up, giving her a slight smile. She knelt down next to them, eyes moving down to look at the Arbiter.

John blinked. That name was familiar too. He looked down at the Elite, and realized it was the same one that had been captured by the Gravemind, along with himself. He slowly moved the pistol away, but cautiously. He still didn't trust the alien, but he was willing to listen to Samus, for now.

The Arbiter grunted, pushing John off and stood up. He growled, mandibles flexing and stared at John, expression unreadable.

"Were it so easy…" He muttered. He suddenly looked away, towards the jungle ahead. He turned his head and nodded at Johnson, before striding away.

"We must go, the Brutes have out scent." He called back, not looking to see if they were following him.

Johnson chuckled, before turning and grabbing one of the marine's rifles. Private Carmine, according to his information. The marines groaned, pulling out his pistol slowly. Johnson cracked into a smile, walking over to John. He held out the rifle.

"Your gonna need this." He grunted, nodding in satisfaction when John grabbed it.

John checked the weapon was functional, as he did will all his weapons. When he was happy it worked, he made his way over to Samus, who was now at the head of the group, gazing after the Arbiter. She smiled when she saw him, before activating her own helmet, golden light shining over her head until the helmet formed.

They strode forward together, heads turning as they examined the jungle. Making sure an ambush wasn't lying in wait. They remained silent for the most part, besides one sentence from Samus.

"Glad to see you aren't dead."

This made John smile, though he wasn't sure why. He was however, happy to see that Samus was alive and well. How she was here, and why she wasn't being shot by marines was something he wasn't focusing on. He could ask her about it later.

A loud howl interrupted his thoughts, and everyone's weapons snapped up, eyes searching and fingers twitching. When no Brutes ran at them, they continued, but at a slower pace. Even the Arbiter had slowed down, though was still ahead of them all.

They eventually entered a small clearing. A waterfall took up one side, while the others consisted of a series of large rocks, which had gaps people could walk through. They stopped here, the marines gathering to discuss their next move. John listened in while keeping an eye on both Samus, and the Arbiter.

Samus was standing a few meters away, and looked like she was talking to someone. Probably Adam, he thought to himself. At the thought of her A.I, he remembered Cortana, and he winced. He was still upset at the thought of leaving her on High Charity, having to deal with Covenant and Flood alike. It had taken all of his strength and willpower just to escape, jumping onto the Prophet of Truth's flagship. He had then jumped ship, and crashed onto the jungle floor.

The Arbiter was peering around the rocks nearby, probably seeing if any threats were nearby. John could respect that, having done it himself many times. He turned his attention back to the marines, who were still in discussion about where to go next. They all jumped when a loud shout interrupted them all, coming from beyond the rocky outcrop. John and Samus ran over, peering around as the Arbiter had done, to see what caused the commotion.

A lone Brute was standing on a large rock, shouting orders at several small grunts. The grunts seemed to be in argument, their little voices carrying far less than the Brutes loud bellows. John turned to his companions, nodding for Johnson to move forward. He was about to talk about a battle plan when he was interrupted by an orange blur.

Samus ran out, throwing caution to the wind. She charged right into the group of Grunts, firing of shots from her ice beam. Grunt screams were interrupted as they froze solid, and the ones to survive the initial onslaught ran for their lives, screaming at the top of their lungs. The Brute roared, jumping down from its rock and charging. Samus ducked under its lunge, firing a charged plasma shot into the back of its skull. It fell in a heap, head slowly melting from the molten heat.

Samus looked around, before putting a hand on her hip.

"It's all clear, come out now." She shouted, casually glancing around at her destruction.

John strode out, right up to her. The marines coming more slowly, keeping their eyes peeled for more baddies. He stopped right in front of her, rigid as stone. She looked at him, visor to visor, and he pictured her bright eyes piercing through his armor.

"That was unacceptable." He said quietly. John didn't do anger very well. He got quiet when he was annoyed or angry, yet that quiet voice usually promised violence. "You could have gotten us all killed."

Her visor dulled, and he saw her roll her eyes. She looked around the clearing, waving a hand in mock show.

"Looks like I did fine. Don't be such a coward." She said, her voice tinged with annoyance. John was dumbstruck by her attitude. Clearly, as her memory came back, so was her old self, gradually.

"You can't just run off like that. We work as a team. I don't care how you used to do it." He muttered, taking a step toward her. While both were giant in their armor, he still towered over her, forcing her to look up at him. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance. As she opened her mouth, another howl rang in the distance, and another, and another. All coming closer.

John groaned to himself, and Samus didn't say anything. Both got combat ready.

"Get ready marines." He ordered, and made his way forward, cautiously. They all followed suite, including Samus. At least she understood, he thought to himself. They didn't cover much ground before a small group of Brutes rushed out of the jungle, teeth bared and snarls everywhere.

None of them wasted time, and began opening fire. Most of the Brutes fell before even reaching them, the last one dying on the Arbiters sword. They made their way forward again, coming up to the edge of another waterfall, overlooking a huge valley. The path they followed led further up, away from the water fall. As they headed up, another Brute and Grunt squad appeared from behind the rocks. They didn't run in, choosing instead to fire from cover.

The Marines all took cover, taking pot shots. Samus simply ran right ahead again, charging her power beam. She unleashed a super missile on the rock cover, vaporizing it instantly. Most of the Grunts died instantly, and the Brute was flung into a nearby rock wall, collapsing in a heap. Samus then ducked behind a rock, waiting for them to advance. John smiled, glad she had listened to him. He moved up and finished the Brute, a few short bursts from his rifle doing the job.

Once it was clear, they continued, the path leading into a tunnel. They made their way slowly, the cave too dark to see clearly. The marines could be heard stumbling and cursing. Samus moved without any worry, John figured she must be using one of her visors to see well. As he looked at her, he was reminded of Cortana once again. His brows furrowed, troubled by his thoughts. Where was she now? Was she ok? What if she wasn't...?

He was interrupted by Samus. She had moved beside him, the both of them reaching the tunnel exit. The next area was a large, hilly area, full of trees. The path continued on the other side, still going uphill.

"Hey, are you alright? If my little show really upset you…" she asked him, head tilted. Her voice sounded casual, but with a hint of something John didn't recognize.

"I'm fine. Let's see what's up ahead." He grunted, not answering the question. Samus didn't comment, simply followed him to the first hill, where they both examined the area while the others caught up. They didn't look for long, before Samus tapped him and pointed a finger, making sure to stay low. She had pointed to the tree tops, and it took John a moment to spot them.

Jackal snipers were sprinkled all throughout the treetops, barely visible. He turned to her, about to ask how she had seen them so quick.

"Thermal visor, comes in handy." She chuckled, answering him before he could ask. He turned back to look at the enemy. There seemed to be six, as well as some more on the ridge they needed to get to. John tapped Samus's arm, getting her attention again.

"Do you have some kind of long range weapon on that thing?" He asked quietly, gesturing to her cannon. She nodded, the cannon lighting up briefly, before it dimmed, a different shape and had different colored highlights. This one was a deep red, and looked sleek and deadly. She took aim, waiting for his signal. The others had gathered around them, rifles ready. John nodded, and Samus fired.

The beam made virtually no noise, just a red angry line flying towards her targets. And boy could she target. Several were dead in seconds, the others not even aware they were under attack. Soon all of them lay dead on the ground, tiny holes in their foreheads.

Samus chuckled, making her way down the hill and across to the ridge on the other side, John right behind her. He had to admit, that was impressive. But he wouldn't tell her, she seemed to have an ego enough for the both of them.

They made their way up the ridge, where more shouting could be heard. This time, Human voices could be heard as well as Brute bellows. They picked up the pace, hurrying along the path towards the source of the noise. They soon emerged in a small clearing, with the path winding up and around, forming a small bridge above them. On the bridge was a Brute, holding a marine over the edge. The marine was shouting, kicking his legs in the air in a vain attempt to escape. The Brute laughed, before being silenced by a burst of John's rifle.

The marine fell, yelling the whole way down. John rushed forward, catching him just before he hit the ground. The man nodded his thanks, before John put him on the ground.

"Do you know what lies ahead soldier?" John asked. He didn't feel he had the time to check the marine's health himself, and knew the others would do a much better job of it.

"Yeah, the Brutes are all over this jungle. They have a large camp not too far ahead, outside an old power station." He dutifully informed them all, before making his way to the other marines. John glanced at Samus, who was also looking in his direction. They both nodded, knowing what would be coming next.

* * *

When they found the camp, the marines all gasped. Brutes were everywhere, either sleeping, shouting at each other, or eating. Nobody wanted to guess what the food was. John signaled for everyone to come in close.

"Alright, we need a plan here. There is no way we will all be able to sneak through." He said quietly, glancing over his shoulder every once in a while, checking on the Brutes.

"What if the marines sneak by, and You, Arbiter and myself provide a show?" Samus asked, smile creeping up on her face.

"A show? This isn't joke time." John muttered. He noticed how Samus seemed to bounce from emotions quickly. Sort of ironic, when he compared that to his own emotional range.

"No, a distraction. We go in, get the Brutes attentions, and then we get out. Simple." She replied, like it would be the easiest thing in the world. He wanted to come out with an argument, but couldn't think of one. Unfortunately, her plan was the only one they had. He nodded, before turning to Johnson.

"Get your men out of here, we'll regroup on the other side, alright?" he told the sergeant. Johnson simply nodded, heading off towards his men to give them orders.

John moved up closer, Samus and the Arbiter right behind him. He counted around thirty or so Brutes in this place, and there could be more. John was analyzing key spots he could use to him advantage when Samus tapped his shoulder.

"Alright, what if I move in first, get most of the attention, and then you and Arbiter can follow, picking off targets and staying low?"

John frowned. She was being serious again, but the plan had problems. If she got too far ahead of them, she could get over whelmed. He voiced his concern.

"I'll make sure to move slowly. And my armor can take the most punishment." She said quietly, changing her cannon to a different beam, the wave beam if John remembered correctly. He knew she was right, but was still unhappy about the plan. He gave a reluctant nod, before moving to find a better vantage point on the outskirts of the camp. The Arbiter followed closely behind.

"She will be fine, Spartan. I have seen her in much more peril." He muttered, lining up shots with his carbine. This didn't comfort John one bit, but he remained silent. They waited for Samus to make her entrance.

When she did, it was nothing flashy, or particularly stealthy. She simply started walking towards the nearest lot of Brutes, like she belonged there. At first, the Brutes didn't seem to notice her. Then, one turned and saw her. It didn't shout out, simply tapped its buddies, who all turned around, seemingly dumbstruck as the bounty hunter walked towards them. She gave them a big wave, and John had to resist the urge to groan to himself. She was having too much fun with this.

One of the Brutes growled, puffing out its chest and marched up to her, a good two feet taller. Samus made a noise, like a whistle of admiration. She put a hand on her hip, saying nothing. The Brute stared down at her a moment, before turning back to its buddies confused. That's when Samus struck.

She swung her arm cannon into the Brutes belly, causing it to yelp and double over. As it fell, she hit it again, this time on the skull. There was an audible crack, and the Brute remained still. She instantly whirled on the others, cannon already charged. A large, purple stream of energy shot out, bouncing between all the Brutes, who didn't seem able to make a noise. She charged right into the middle of them all, kicks and punches flying. One Brute managed to yell, but Samus quickly shut it up with a charged power beam shot.

John heard more shouts, other Brutes coming to see what was happening. John glanced at the Arbiter, who was already taking aim. John followed suit, and as soon as the next group entered the camp, they opened fire. Multiple Brutes fell before they even knew what was happening. The others turned to the trees, trying to spot the hidden attackers. But before they could, Samus was on them.

She shoulder charged into the nearest one, a loud crack echoing out as she broke its spine. She wasted no time, opening fire before the dead Brute fell. Its brethren fought bravely, but couldn't hold up against Samus's onslaught. She ran forward, charged shots killing wherever they hit. She moved forward, towards the back of the camp.

John nodded to the Arbiter, both of them moving to keep her in line of sight. This continued until the camp was cleared, Brute bodies everywhere. Some frozen, others burnt. Some simply piles of ash or riddled with plasma marks. Samus stood there, in the center of camp, looking around for more targets. John made his way over to her, stepping over bodies that lay in his path. She deactivated her helm when he reached her, a smile playing on her lips.

"Well, that was fun." She chuckled, glancing down at her handiwork. John didn't comment. He had to admit it was impressive, but worrisome at the same time. The fact Samus was powerful was obvious, but he briefly wondered what would happen if they fought again. He remembered their one and only fight. She had not been this powerful, or clever. She must have been gaining more of her old self, because now she was a one Human army.

A loud crackle made them all jump. Johnson's voice rang out from their radios.

"You guys hearing me? We made it through, but have run into a Brute pack. We're running for it, but could use your help." He said, panting as he ran, followed by a quick insult to the Brutes. "Come on you dumb apes! You want breakfast, you gotta catch it."

John looked at Samus, who was now frowning at the news. Arbiter flex his mandibles. Both looked at him, and John looked into the jungle canopy. He couldn't let Johnson or his men get captured, damn the consequences. He nodded, heading back into the jungle, his partners right behind him.

* * *

They had found the marines location. Another power station, much bigger than the last. And it had more Brutes, too. They all gazed down from their hidden vantage point, on a ledge just above. John had spotted his friends being thrown into a small building by the biggest Brute he had ever seen. What's worse was it had a Gravity Hammer. He had faced that weapon before, and knew it was dangerous. Judging the look on Samus's face, she knew as well.

"Alright, plan?" She asked, not turning to look at them. She had re-activated her helm, and was currently 'scanning'. John didn't know what that meant exactly, but she had told him it gives valuable information, so he hadn't questioned it.

"We need to get the marines, and get out…alright, Samus, we all make out way to the bridge over there. Thel and I will hold it, and make sure none get across. You keep going and find the marines. Bring them back to the bridge, and we will radio for evac."

They all looked at the bridge he was talking about. It was the only thing linking one side of the station to the other. They simply nodded and made their way down, careful not to be spotted by any unseen eyes. It wasn't until they hit the bridge that they met resistance. That same Brute, along with other, smaller ones came strolling out the other side. John opened fire, his companions following suite. The Brute laughed, and charged, hammer ready to swing. John jumped out of the way, hammer shattering the ground he was standing on moments before.

John threw a grenade, which the Brute deflected with a hammer swing, before coming after him again. It swung overhead, striking the ground again. John moved in close this time, landing jabs and kicks across its belly and sides. The Brute roared, no longer amused, and threw its own punch, which John caught. He held its fist as long as he could, both glaring at each other. It had become a test of strength, and neither were going to back down. That is, until a large glob of molten energy splashed onto the Brutes face, causing it to scream and run off, falling off the edge of the bridge in the process.

"Sorry to break up the macho contest, but we have other things to worry about." Samus shouted, already turning back to fire upon the rest of the Brutes. John ran over to her, firing his rifle.

"Go find the others, we have this." He ordered. She looked like she was about to object, but she nodded slowly after a few moments. She ran ahead, switching to her Morph Ball and rolling into a drain. John didn't have time to question, as he returned his focus to the fight at hand. It wasn't much of a contest, and soon John and the Arbiter were the only ones alive on the bridge. They could hear more shouts and plasma fire, but he was sure Samus was fine.

Occasionally, a curious Grunt or Jackal would peek around a corner, only to be gunned down instantly. Otherwise, they simply waited for Samus to return with the others. It didn't take long, but John was surprised when Samus walked into view, Johnson her only company. She sighed when she reached them. Johnson looked sullen.

"They were all dead, even private Carmine…" she muttered, frowning.

"I knew that kid was in over his head…" Johnson replied quietly.

They all stood there in silence, Johnson calling for an evac after a moment. They didn't have to wait long, and soon all of them were onboard a Pelican. Johnson moved up to the cockpit, probably to tell the piolet where they wanted to go.

John turned to Samus, but found she was asleep. Her golden hair billowing in the air, framing her face nicely. The dark rings under her eyes showed how tired she really was, and John wondered if she had gotten any rest since they met on Halo. His body decided she had the right idea, and pretty soon, John fell asleep as well.


	3. Chapter 2

**Hey all, long time no see! Sorry sorry, I know, been gone a longish time. Well unfortunately, I've been having a horrible time. I wont bore you with all the details, but I've had alot of personal stuff going on, and my house got partially flooded. So that means that I will be publishing new chapters alot slower than I used to. Thats not to say I've given up! Not at all! Just might take longer, that's all.**

**Now, comments time!**

** Bold Blinding Blue: Thank you, I always appreciate when someone points out a mistake, so I'm happy you are keeping an eye out.**

** ExoGeni VI: Thanks! Actually, Halo 4 is where things get most interesting. Kind of think of 2 and 3 as back story, to get to the good part. So keep reading. :P**

**Well, I've held you up long enough, read on!**

**I do not own any rights to Halo or Metroid.**

* * *

Chapter Two

The flight was relatively quiet, all on board dwelling on recent events. For Samus, that meant several things. The current war she was now a part of, the death of the soldiers she fought beside. And the Master Chief, or John. She glanced at him now from the corner of her eye, studying him as she had done many times this last day.

He sat there, in his armor. She had no clue what he was looking at, or thinking. It was near impossible to get a read on him, and yet in many ways, they were similar. She had seen the deaths of the marines had impacted him, the way his body slouched when he had heard. He obviously cared about those he fought beside. He was also calm and collected in any situation, something Samus admitted she couldn't be.

They soon arrived at their destination, a base called 'Crow's nest' according to Johnson. The Pelican began its decent down into the belly of the base, and everyone got ready to hop out. Samus wondered what might lay inside, and where they might be sent off to next. She hadn't told anyone just yet, but she had missed being a part of a team.

The Pelican touched down, and everyone began piling out. John went first, followed by Johnson, Samus and finally the Arbiter. They all made their way forward, and Samus couldn't help but grin at some of the reactions people were giving their strange group. One group of soldiers were looking at them all with huge admiration, like a child would to a super hero. Another group gasped, pointing and grinning at them. Samus couldn't help but feel a little smug. They stopped, Johnson greeting someone in front of them. She peered over their shoulders, her eyebrows raising when she saw who it was.

Commander Miranda Keyes nodded to them all, shaking hands with each one, even Thel. She turned to Johnson, smiling.

"Where did you find him?" She asked the Sargent.

"Napping, out back." He joked.

"I'll bet, it's good to see you chief."

"Likewise ma'am." John replied, voice deep and gravely.

"You too Samus. Now, let's get you all up to speed." Miranda said, smiling at Samus before turning on her heel and walking down the hallway, everyone else following suite.

Samus examined the place as they walked, not paying too much attention to the conversation up ahead. She knew Miranda was filling them in on what had been going on, and she already knew most of it. The building was old, couldn't have been too modern. The concrete walls were chipped, paint peeling off, exposing the inner walls. As they walked, a medic stormed pass, wheeling an unconscious soldier along with him.

"Casualties have been…extreme." Miranda muttered, answering the unspoken question. She continued talking as she walked, explaining the situation.

"Truth landed all his forces here, in the ruins of Mombasa. They've started excavating the city, digging."

They walked into a large room, full of computer screens and other hardware. Samus figured it was a command room. Many people, mostly technicians ran between the screens, tapping away franticly. She wondered if this was normal, or if something was about to happen.

"What about Halo?" John asked, concern in his voice. He hadn't been there for the final showdown on Halo alongside the rest of them.

"We stopped it, but only temporarily. Now, Truth is looking for something called the Ark, where he will be able to fire all the rings at once. If he succeeds…Humanity, the Covenant…"

"The rings will wipe out everything…" Samus finished. She frowned at the prospect. She hadn't seen the last firing of the Halo Array, and she was pretty sure she didn't want to it to happen again.

"Keyes Ma'am, I have Lord Hood." A tech called out from a monitor.

"Patch him through." She replied, moving up towards a large screen at the back of the room. It took up an entire wall. The others soon joined her.

Lord Hood appeared on the screen, as wrinkled and as proud looking as Samus remembered him being. She had only met him a day ago, and already it felt like a lifetime. Something told her this war was going to feel like forever.

"Good news Commander?" He asked, gazing down at them all.

"As good as it gets sir." She replied, gesturing to John.

"I can see. What's your status son?"

"Green. Sir." John replied, posture straightening up. Samus chuckled, a soldier through and through.

"Don't think I can't see you too Samus. Good to see you're still with us." Hood said, smirking.

Samus hadn't been expecting that, so she simply nodded. Hood gazed at her a moment longer, before returning his attention to John.

"Commanders come up with a good plan, though without you I didn't think we could pull it off."

Miranda stepped forward, half facing the group and half facing Lord Hood.

"Truth's ships are clustered about the excavation point, and infantry have deployed anti-aircraft batteries along its perimeter. But…if we neutralize just one of the batteries, punch a hole in Truths defenses…" She informed the group, letting the end finish itself.

Samus could see the benefits of the plan. It would be risky, but stopping the Covenant was top priority as far as she was concerned. She watched Lord Hood, who looked like he was mulling it over, he pulled up a data pad and typed in a few commands before looking back up at the group.

"I'll initiate a low level strike, hit them right where it hurts. It's a big risk, but I'm confidant you will all-"

The screen, and room went dark. Alarms rang in the distance, and Samus instinctively activated her thermal visor, and readied her cannon. When she determined that no threat was in the room, she relaxed, slightly. She noticed John had done the same thing, taking a combat stance. Yet another way they were similar.

"Emergency generators, now!" Miranda shouted, moving over to one of the techs.

"Shielding's failed, its down and recharging." He informed her, typing away still.

"As soon as its back up, contact Lord Hood, we need to-"

The screen lit back up, plunging the rest of the room into darkness. Samus returned to her default visor and looked up at the screen, glaring slightly. The 'person' was wrinkled, more so then any Human. He wore red robes, and seemed to be seated. She knew this was a Prophet, she had met one, Regret, back on Halo. This must have been Truth. He looked down on the like one might look at a bug.

"You are, all of you vermin. Cowering in the dirt, thinking, what I wonder? That you might escape the coming fire? No, your world will burn! And not even your demon will live to creep, blackened from-"

"You talk big, but actions speak louder than words, so let me tell you something. You're going to lose, and I'll be there when it happens." Samus said, moving to the front of the group. She had heard enough from this bag of gas. Truths eyes bulged, focused on her now.

"Heresy! Your very existence is heresy! You will burn, alongside your wretched kind!" He near screamed, before vanishing. The power flickered back on, the sounds of computers and lights activating filled the air.

She turned to look at everyone else, and was met with various faces. Thel's mandibles were wide open, he had probably never heard someone talk back to a Prophet before. Miranda was trying to look professional, but a slight grin creped on her face. Johnson was just grinning, looking like he wanted to clap. And of course, John was unreadable, just a faceless helmet.

"Give the order, we're closing shop." Miranda told the tech.

"Ma'am?"

"We're about to get hit…"

He nodded, pressing buttons and talking into a radio. Miranda turned to the rest of them, looking determined.

"The wounded, we are getting them out. All of them." She said, starting to walk off towards another group of soldiers.

"If I have to carry them myself." Johnson said quietly.

"Ma'am, squad leaders are requesting a rally point, where should they go?" The tech asked.

Miranda didn't answer right away. She pulled her side arm out, loading in.

"To war." She said quietly, walking away from them all.

Samus didn't think that was a very good answer, but she admitted it was cool, so she didn't say anything. The group huddled together to discuss strategy.

"John, you and Samus head on out, help the soldiers. Arbiter and I will guard the command center." He said, changing to professional soldier in an instant. John nodded, indicating to Samus to follow him.

They were led to a lower floor by a marine. The room was full of weapons, all on racks. John grabbed a couple of rifles and two side arms, as well as a handful of grenades. He turned and offered Samus a pistol slowly, like he wasn't sure he should. She couldn't hold in her laughter. It was a nice gesture, but, as she pointed to her cannon, she didn't need it. John didn't comment, simply put the weapon away and made his way forward, following the marine.

They were led down many long and windy walkways, marines running in both directions. John kept a steady but quick pace, which Samus made sure to match. She remembered his words about teamwork, and while it had annoyed her at the time, she did see the sense in it. Not to mention if she was going to be working with him, which it looked like she would be for a while, they might as well get along.

"Samus, I've been in touch with the Commander. You and John are needed in the Hanger, its where most of the marines will be getting out." Adam told her, scaring the crap out of her. With all that had been going on, she had almost forgotten about him.

"Fuck! Adam don't do that"

"What? Forget about me?" he chuckled. Samus wanted to punch him, knowing all too well he was inside her head.

"Just a warning, there will most likely be Covenant between here and the hanger." He informed her, going back to business. She told John what was waiting for them. He simply nodded and readied his rifle. They reached a doorway, the faint cracks of gunfire coming from the other side. Both Samus and John looked at one another, nodded, then ran through the doorway.

A squad of marines were pinned down, hiding behind crates and damaged vehicles scattered across the large hallway they had entered. A larger group of Covenant were on the other side, peppering the marines with plasma fire.

Samus wasted no time, rushing forward. She used her Power Beam to make quick work of the enemy. She noted that it was only Grunts and Jackals, no Brutes. John was right behind her, firing at the one or two she missed. Only a few seconds had passed, and by the time the marines looked up, they had moved on.

* * *

They soon reached the hanger, and quickly discovered that this was where all the Brutes were. Roughly two dozen or so, they seemed hell-bent of destroying the docked Pelicans, which the marines fought desperately to protect. This time John too the lead, rushing right for the nearest Brute. He delivered a swift and vicious punch to its spine, and it collapsed with a yelp.

Brutes nearby turned around, opening fire. John ducked behind a wall, his shields flaring gold in response to the shots. They were so focused on him, that they didn't even notice Samus. Until it was too late that is.

She had run up a set of nearby steps, and jumped right into the middle of the Brutes, surprising them. She wasted no time, switching to her Ice Beam and freezing several in place before they could blink. The others tried firing at her, but most shots hit the Brutes behind her. She rushed forward, whacking a Brute with her arm cannon. A loud crack echoed out, and the Brute fell. John had taken this opportunity to emerge from his cover, ducking under a Brutes swing and grabbing its neck, crushing the soft flesh of its throat with his hand.

Only a few Brutes were left, and soon they were gone too. John immediately turned to the nearest marine, signaling him to begin the take-off procedures for the Pelicans. Samus watched him, noting how the marines almost rushed to do his bidding.

"He really is a hero, huh?" she muttered to herself.

"Why? Fancy him do you?"

She jumped again, letting out a growl under her breath. Adam was really starting to get on her nerves, and fact he seemed to relish.

"Of course not, I hardly know the guy! Besides, I think it's a bit soon to be looking for dates, I only woke up a few days ago."

Adam chuckled but said no more. She groaned, wanting to chew him out some more. Before she could though, John returned. They both watched as the Marines boarded the Pelicans and made their escape.

"I have our next orders, we're to meet up with the others for the last Pelican out. Everyone else is gone." John muttered, turning and making his way back.

"Already? Wow that was efficient"

"No…just not that many to evacuate"

She stopped walking. She wanted to smack herself, feeling like an idiot. How stupid was she, to say such a thing? She sighed, before catching up to John. The walk back was quiet, the only noises being blaring sirens and far distant yells.

John informed her that the dock they were heading to be about halfway back to the command center, and that they were to wait there for the rest of the group. She nodded, not trusting her stupid mouth at that moment.

They soon made it to the dock in question. The very same dock they had arrived from, Samus noted. Nobody else was here yet, so both of them just stood and waited. John was like a statue, unmoving and unreadable. Samus on the other hand was leaning on a box, tapping her arm cannon. After all the action she had been a part of, this was kind of boring.

"So, want to play a game of eye-"

He tilted his head slightly, the only movement he had made in minutes. She instantly became alert. She was already getting the hang of his body language, trouble was coming. She soon heard a high whine, getting ever closer. John must have heard it before her, making her question once again just what he was exactly.

What the noise belonged to was quickly answered, as several Brutes fell from the sky, all equipped with thruster packs of some kind. Samus couldn't hold back a snicker.

"Something funny?" John muttered, eyeing the Brutes as they slowly advanced.

"Just something about pirates…" She answered with a chuckle. He would have no clue what she was on about, but she was about to show him. She walked towards them and pointed her cannon at the nearest one.

They all snarled and activated their packs, boosting up into the air. Samus grinned, as she had been waiting for that. She quickly fired several missiles at them, before lowering the cannon. The Brutes dodged, every single one evading its missile. They all looked at each other, before laughing and turning back to Samus, raising their weapons.

"Your plan didn't seem to work."

"Who said I was aiming for them?"

The Brutes didn't turn, didn't see the missiles circle back around, this time flying right for each Brutes pack. Before any of them knew it, the missiles impacted the Thrusters, detonating them. All the Brutes ignited into a bright, blue flash, not one even getting out a scream.

Samus turned back to John, jabbing a thumb at the destruction behind her.

"Well?" she asked. He simply shrugged.

"I've seen better."

She was about to argue that he clearly hadn't, when the Pelican finally arrived. It landed swiftly, the back opening. The pilot gave them a nod, before turning back to his dashboard. The rest of the group arrived shortly after, everyone present. Miranda stopped John before he could board, a nervous look on her face.

"Chief? Brutes took the command center, we couldn't hold it. We need you to go arm a bomb in the center." She said slowly.

Samus wasn't sure she had heard that correctly. And she certainly wasn't expecting John to simply nod and step out of the Pelican. Like hell he was doing this alone. She got up and made her way out, everyone looking at her.

"Samus, I need you to come with us, we-." Miranda started, but Samus shushed her.

"No, I will be going with him, on the suicide mission you gave him."

"This isn't up for negotiation, it's an order."

"And I don't take orders from you."

Silence rang out. Miranda's mouth hung slightly open, before she shut it, glaring at Samus. She gave the signal, and the Pelican began its take off, minus Samus and John. She turned to John, who was looking at her with a slight head tilt.

"What?"

"Why did you disobey an order like that?"

"It was a crap order, and I don't like leaving you here like that. Now come on, we have a base to blow up." She said, marching back towards the command center. John fell in behind her, remaining silent. She felt like she could feel his stare through the back of her helmet, but she kept moving forward, not wanting to give him any satisfaction.

They quickly made it to the entrance to the command center, and after a quick discussion, John took a peek.

"There are a dozen or so Brutes, at least one Chieftain. And I see the Bomb, in the center of the room." He informed her, pulling back from the doorway.

She thought on this, wondering how on earth they could get in there, activate it, and escape. She told John her thoughts.

"One step at a time." He muttered, before relaying his own plan.

"We need to activate that bomb, that's the number one priority. Your shields and weapons are stronger than mine, so you should go in first and act as a decoy. I will move in shortly after and make straight for the Bomb."

She really didn't like the idea of being a 'decoy', but she couldn't think of an alternative, so she reluctantly agreed. They counted to three, and Samus rushed in. She immediately opened fire on the first thing she saw, the poor Brute frozen solid before he could move. The others whirled on her, rushing forward with teeth bared. She tried to keep a distance from them, but they all wanted to get to her, and none of them were cautious. The only one who didn't join in was the chieftain, who simply chuckled as he watched.

She ducked and dodged, firing at them when she had the distance. Where the hell was John? Was he going to activate this thing or what? One Brute lunged, grabbing her by the waist and pinning her down. She elbowed it, causing it to grunt and let go. She rolled away, jumping up and firing plasma in its face. The others were almost upon her, and she was just about to consider running for it when a loud beep startled them all.

John stood in front of the bomb, which was now flashing red. The chieftain lay dead at his feet. Samus used this time to kill the other Brutes, a spray from her Plasma beam doing the job.

"Good work." John remarked, walking towards her.

"Yeah yeah, good job team, woo. Shouldn't we be running?"

John nodded, sprinting towards the exit, Samus right behind him.

"How are we going to get out?"

"There is an old elevator shaft back in the hanger. We need to get to in in three minutes or we blow up."

"Nice way to put it…" She remarked dryly, before focusing on running.

They ran hand and fast, retracing their steps towards the hanger. They met little to no other life, the only things left besides them grunts who had been left behind, and who know were screaming and running about. They soon reached the hanger, and john dashed towards the other side.

Samus soon saw what he was running towards, the old elevator inside the wall, heading down. John made it inside, turning at waiting for her. He pressed the button as soon as she was inside, and the elevator immediately began its descent. Not a second after, they heard loud explosions, and the walls rocked. Fire spewed out from the ground floor, rushing down towards them.

Samus gabbed John and threw him beneath her, using her armor to shield him from the flames. Neither of them saw the cables of the elevator break, and both yelled in shock as they plummeted towards the ground. The last thing Samus saw was fire, and then all went black.


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey all, look I'm not dead! Still have some stuff going on that's preventing me from writing, but I havent given up. So hang in there!**

**Alright, this chapters a bit quieter than some, more of a personal chapter then an action packed one.**

**Now, comments time!**

** Silversliced-rain: Thank you for your understanding. We've been having cyclones and such over in Australia, so its been a pretty wet, crappy time. **

** Quathis: Thats the goal I was trying to hit. Samus is NOT a soldier, and has always had trouble following orders, including Adam. She can however recognise the value of an order, and decide for herself if she wants to follow it or not. **

** Charizard64: I am so glad you brought it up. Now, I've been getting alot of PM's about this, and I just want to make it clear. Samus and John will NOT be getting together in this series, ever. It just doesnt make sense. Samus is a psychological mess, and John has no sex drive. What I will be doing however, is forging a close bond between them the way any two soldiers would create. So, in a sense, they will be very close, but not in a sexual way, ever. Just...no.**

** DuQaine: Thank you! It's nice to see I can make a story you really seem to enjoy, I will try my best to keep delivering :P. I'm glad you like my version of the two meeting, it's usually the other way and I wanted to do something different, and that made more sense to me. So keep reading and let me know your thoughts!**

**Alright, be sure to comment to let me know what you think, and to follow and/or favorite should you enjoy.**

**I dont own anything to do with Halo or Metroid, unfortunately.**

* * *

Chapter Three

John awoke groggily, groaning as he willed his body to move. The last thing he remembered was falling, and a lot of fire. With effort, he commanded his body to move, dust and rubble falling off his armor as he slowly rose. Everything was black, and for a moment, John thought he might have suffered damage to his eyes, but after a few moments, he realized that it was simply dark.

"I seem to be getting knocked out a lot…" He mused to himself, checking for any injuries. Everything seemed to be alright, though his body ached like hell.

"Well, maybe if you stopped jumping off things, you wouldn't have that problem." Cortana chipped in.

"Where are we?" John asked, checking his weapon.

"We're at the bottom of the elevator shaft, there's a large garage area ahead. Some marines are also there, survivors of the base explosion."

John nodded, putting his rifle away. He was startled to hear a large pile of rocks shifting nearby, and was about to draw his gun again, when he remembered he hadn't fallen down the shaft alone.

The large pile of debris shifted, and Samus emerged, covered in dust and grunting with effort. The green lights from her suit illuminated the darkness, casting eerie shadows on the walls. She turned to him, her helmet deactivating. He could just barely make out her annoyed expression in the dark.

"Thanks for the help…" she muttered, brushing off dust and dirt from one of her large shoulderplates. John didn't reply, eyeing the direction they needed to go. He activated his flashlights, attached to his helmet.

"We need to head this way, we can group up with marine survivors and rendezvous with the others." He instructed, turning to face her. She looked like she was about to protest, but seemed to pick up on the urgency, because she simply nodded and re-activated her helmet, waiting for him to lead on.

He walked on, down the dark corridor with her in tow. As they walked in silence, he thought about their fall, and how she had shielded him earlier. The bounty hunter could get on his nerves with her lack of care, but at the same time it was obvious that she did still care. Willing to throw herself in harm's way to protect others, which was a quality he could admire. Watching her throw boulders just before was also impressive, a lot stronger than she looked. Clearly Samus was a lot more than she appeared, which was saying something. He cataloged all this, sure that the information was well worth remembering.

They eventually made it to the garage Cortana mentioned, and sure enough, a group of marines were hurrying about, preparing Warthogs and weapons. John marched up to the commanding officer.

"Sir? Spartan 117 and the hunter Samus ready to assist." He said, standing to attention. He heard Samus scoff, all her weight on one leg still. The officer grunted, eyeing them both.

"Spartan eh? Sure could use the help. Hey Griff! Let these two in a Warthog, the rest of us can pile on the other one."

The marine, 'Griff', sighed and slowly got out, making his way to the already crowed vehicle. That left another marine on the gunner, and the driving and passenger seat available. John immediately marched over, jumping in the driver's seat, and starting the engine. He watched the other car, piled with soldiers, drive out a large security door and out into a large cave. John was about to follow when he noticed Samus was still standing.

She seemed to be confused, looking at the Warthog like it was something odd. He realized that vehicles must have been different in her time, but he was in a hurry.

"Get in." He grunted, clutching the wheel tightly. He was anxious to get moving.

"In that? It has wheels! I didn't realize just how far back humanity had gone…" She sighed, still staring.

"Either get in or you can walk."

"Walking might be preferred, this thing is a matchbox…" She grumbled, but quickly jumped into the passenger seat, her arm cannon hanging out the side.

John wasted no more time, gunning the engine and swiftly catching up to the others. They soon exited the cave system, emerging out into a large, savannah type area. Small groups of Covenant lay dead, the work of the marines. But what really caught John's eye was the large mess of cables and metal rings scattered everywhere. They were huge, and spread back as far as the horizon. With a jolt he realized that it must have been one of the orbital elevators. One of humanity's greatest works, destroyed.

John could feel anger welling up inside him, but he suppressed it, like he always did. He had a job to do, and he didn't have time for emotional outbursts. He glanced at Samus as he drove, checking her reaction to it all. She stared impassively at the sights, not bored, just not much emotion. John remembered she hadn't had much rest, neither had he. They should get some once they found the others.

Both jeeps drove past several groups of Covenant, mostly Grunts accompanied by a Brute commander. They were all gunned down pretty quick, thanks to the Warthogs turrets, and Samus arm cannon. Despite being in a moving vehicle, her aim was spot on.

"Are you really that good of a shot? Or do you get help?" He asked her quietly as they drove. She turned to him, seeming to smile slightly.

"My armor has a targeting system, which helps me predict the path of a target. Not to mention things like my missiles and the Wave Beam, actually lock on."

"Impressive. Your armors a wonder."

"Yeah, I guess it is…" She sighed, looking away.

"Something wrong?"

"Oh, just remembering all the people I knew. You know, the ones who died one hundred thousand years ago."

John didn't know what to say to that, so he remained silent for the moment, choosing to focus on running a grunt over instead. The little alien managed to get out a squeak before the grill of the jeep devoured it. Samus sighed again, looking back at John.

"Sorry, I don't mean to be all depressive. I'm still wrapping my head around…all this." She said quietly. John looked at her, keeping one eye on the road.

"No, if anyone deserves to feel that way, it's you. So…why not tell me more about your armor?" He asked her. He needed her to focus, so he was trying to make her feel better. He had no clue if it would work, small talk was never a strong suit of his. It seemed to however, because she did that slight smile again.

"Well, I'll tell you what I can, but bear in mind even I don't know absolutely everything." She chuckled, before continuing.

"The suit is a fine mix of Human and Chozo technology. It was created by the Galactic Federation, the equivalent of your UNSC, and the Chozo, an ancient race of intelligent beings. I…was raised by the Chozo for a time, after my home was destroyed by the Forerunners. I was very young, just a child." She muttered.

This caught John's attention. Losing her home at such a young age, being raised by strange people she didn't know. Sounded a lot like what had happened to him, a few details aside. He suddenly understood her a little better. He returned his attention to her story.

"By the time I was an adult, I had been trained to fight. And I was very good at it. The Chozo reached out to the Galactic Federation, and so my armor was created." She said, looking down at her suit with admiration.

"It was state of the art, even back then. It has its own energy generator, allowing me to use my weapons without recharge. It's also modular, allowing me to absorb many different types of energy weapons, without the need to carry it all."

"What about your missiles? You seem to have an endless supply, but there physical." John pointed out. Samus frowned, looking down at her cannon. The car jolted as another poor Grunt was run over.

"That's something I could never figure out myself. Whenever I run out, I can charge cycle, which starts replenishing missiles. Who knows, maybe it has its own micro-processing plant." She laughed, looking up to stare ahead.

"And your shields?"

Now she frowned, looking at him with a slightly annoyed expression.

"My shields are strong enough to take anything you or the Covenant could throw at me. Though, yours does seem to regenerate remarkably quickly. I have to do the cycle thing I mentioned, and which my shields, it takes a long time."

"I still can't take a rocket to the face, or a grenade." John remarked, which caused Samus to simply 'pfft' and continue staring ahead.

The sound of gunfire quickly changed the mood in the car, everyone getting battle ready. As they rounded a bend, they saw the source of the noise.

Marines hid in buildings, with Brutes firing from out in the open. If that wasn't bad enough, several large, very aggressive looking vehicles circled nearby. With one, large wheel, and the whole thing covered in spikes, it looked very mean. John had heard reports of this thing, a 'Chopper' as it was aptly known.

"Alright, we need to secure those men. Samus, do you think you can focus on the Choppers?" he asked her, forming battle plans as he spoke.

"You mean those ugly ass gray things? My pleasure." She grinned, her cannon shifting and taking on a deep red color. John knew that was her Plasma Beam, having seen it being used many times before.

"Alright, I'll drive up, keep the Choppers off us. Marine, you and I will focus on the Brutes in front of the buildings, ok?" He asked, glancing back briefly at the marine, who seemed to be quivering. His name badge read 'Private Dick Simmons'.

"Uhh, yes sir…" Simmons squeaked, readying the turret, more hiding behind it.

John didn't waste any more time, and charged forward. The Brutes noticed him coming instantly, and turned to open fire. Simmons started firing the machine gun, and the Brutes took cover, forced to retreat under the heavy rain of bullets. One of the Choppers broke off from the rest, and began charging them head on.

John was not ready to play a game of chicken with this thing, but it didn't matter. A large missile flew out, impacting the Chopper on the side, causing the whole thing to simply explode. He turned to say well done, but quickly realized Samus was not in the car anymore. He scanned the area, and quickly spotted her orange armor, running right at the pack of Choppers. John considered helping, but remembered the jungle. She could handle herself.

He pulled up the jeep in front of the buildings the marines were hiding in, giving them some more cover. He ordered Simmons to keep firing, and hopped out, grabbing his rifle and firing on a few exposed Brutes. He ran towards them, shoving the nearest one into the others, causing all of them to fall out of cover. One in particular, in blue armor, was forced out into the middle of the open, which Simmons took full advantage of.

"Yeah, suck it blue!" He shouted, firing way more bullets into the Brute than required.

John still had three Brutes to deal with himself. He ducked a punch from one, returning the favor by landing an uppercut right under its chin. It grunted, momentarily off balance. John quickly grabbed one if its grenades, activating it and planting it on its chest. He then kicked swiftly, knocking it into another Brute, the both of them exploding in a bright, blue flash.

This left one Brute, who seemed to realize how much trouble he was in. It roared and charged, a desperate move which got it nowhere. John quickly drew his rifle and fired, dozens of bullets burying themselves in the Brutes flesh before it even reached him. As its body fell, silence descended on the field, the only noise being marines checking on each other, and the wind.

John emerged from the Brutes covered area, checking the field for Samus. He didn't have to look long. Where the Choppers had been gathered, was nothing more than carnage. Some of the Choppers were just molten slag, and others had simply been blown apart, pieces scattered everywhere. And standing on a large pile of Chopper corpses was Samus, hand on her hip and gazing out like a conqueror. She grinned when she saw him, gesturing to the wreckages.

"What do you think? Did I do well?" She asked, still smirking. She jumped down from the pile, landing perfectly in front of him.

"Good job, get back to the Warthog." He instructed. She visibly sagged slightly, rolling her eyes.

"Would it kill you to lighten up a bit?" She grumbled, before shrugging and making her way back to the Warthog. John didn't reply, simply turned around and headed back himself. He couldn't understand how she could be so…casual about all this. What on earth had she seen or witnessed to make her so carefree on the battle field?

They both jumped back in the jeep, much to the joy of Simmons. John started the engine, and they continued on their way, moving onto the large Highway up ahead. The drive was silent for a while, Samus gazing out the side glumly and John being as stout as ever. He looked at her, and the thought popped up again. John decided to chance asking, he needed to understand why she was so reckless.

"Samus?"

She looked over at him casually, waiting for him to continue. He gathered his thoughts, thinking how best to ask.

"John wants to know a bit more about your history." Cortana commented. John growled a little under his breath, not happy Cortana had jumped the gun, but Samus chuckled. She leaned back in her seat.

"Where do I even start? There's so much I could go over."

"Why not some of your greatest achievements to start?" John asked, keeping his eyes forward. She nodded and seemed to think, eyes going distant.

"Well, I did a lot in the name of the Galactic Federation. I wiped out an entire race, known as the Space Pirates, by destroying their base of operations."

That sounds dangerous, how were you sure they didn't have any nearby bases?"

"Oh, you misunderstand. I didn't blow up a single base, I destroyed the whole planet they were on."

John froze, the car coming to a halt. Simmons yelped in the back, and Samus had to grab the side of the Warthog so she didn't fly forward. He slowly turned to her, stunned beyond words.

"You blew up a whole planet? With help? He asked slowly, though he thought he knew the answer already.

"No, it was just me against an army. I was hired to do a job, and I always deliver." She said, looking at him confused. "Surely the UNSC is capable of destroying planets. The Covenant for sure."

"Yeah, but not a single soldier. That's ridiculous. The amount of power required…"

"I activated a self-destruct sequence the pirates had installed into their systems, which was connected to the planet. One thing led to another and…" She said, letting the sentence hang. John knew how it ended. He started at her a moment longer, before slowly turning back to the wheel and began driving again. It was silent once again, the revelation that Samus was a planet destroyer stunning everyone but her.

"Was that the biggest thing you ever did?"

She didn't answer right away, the emotion in her eyes shifting. She now looked nervous, and almost like she wanted to not answer, but John needed to know. This woman could take on army's, what could she be afraid of?

"No, it wasn't. The biggest thing I ever took on was the Flood, and it's earlier form." She muttered.

"Earlier form?"

She nodded, shifting uncomfortably. John remembered how scared she had seemed to be back in Halo, in front of the Gravemind. And the Gravemind seemed to remember her. It made sense she would have fought the Flood, John had just never put two and two together.

"Yeah, it wasn't always the disgusting, fleshy thing you know. It used to be different, much more volatile and aggressive. It had a different name then too. We called it…Phazon."

The way she said it, John had to guess this Phazon had caused untold destruction. But he remained quiet, waiting for her to continue.

"Phazon was a bright, blue substance. It was a chemical, but possessed strange, organic qualities. It was an enigma to all science." She said, taking a breath before continuing.

"It had an impulse to attach to living things, changing them and corrupting them. Those that survived the change went insane, attacking anything it could. Animals, plants, people. It didn't distinguish…"

John frowned under his helmet. This Phazon infected everything, whereas the Flood only attacked intelligent life. He wanted to ask questions, but knew they would be answered in the Hunter in time. He waited for her to continue.

"I was sent on several missions dealing with it, trying to free worlds from its grasp. And I was successful for the most part. I freed two worlds from its corruption. But we still didn't understand it, or how it worked. It didn't just possess fast, it could also work slow…" She said quietly, moving an arm to hug herself.

John realized just how upsetting this must have been for her, and decided he wouldn't push the subject. He still needed her combat ready, not frightened by past trauma. Cortana however had other ideas.

"What do you mean?" She asked slowly. Samus took several breaths, seeming to steady herself.

"Over the course of my dealings with it, it infected me…it started out small, little emotional changes, but by the end, I was fighting for my body. It whispered to me, telling me of the power I could have, trying to make me give in. I fought every step of the way…"

John turned to her, face hidden. The expression he wore however was horrified. He knew that the Flood possession was horrible, he has seen it in Captain Keyes back on the first Halo. But this sounded even worse. It spoke to her? Tried to convince her to give in? It sounded more like it was trying to convince Samus to help it, rather than just take her over.

"I wasn't the only one, other hunters, friends, were also infected. I…had to kill a lot of them. By the end, I was the last one with my mind intact. All the others gave in…"

"How did you resist? I mean, surely the thought came to you." Cortana asked curiously. John wanted to tell her to shut up, but also wanted to know. He was starting to understand more and more why Samus was the way she is. In fact, he was impressed she wasn't insane from all the things she had suffered.

"Of course it did! Watching it takes friends, having it whisper nonstop, of course I started to weaken. If fact, I might have given up if I hadn't learnt something very valuable from one of the hunters. I learnt that Phazon wasn't a chemical, but organic after all. It came from a world called Phaze, a living planet which was aggressively throwing chunks of itself across the Galaxy, with the goal of creating more planets like it." She said quietly, dangerously. John thought he saw a gleam behind her visor, but he shrugged it off as a trick of the light.

"Knowing I didn't have much time left, I headed for Phaze, with the intent of destroying it, or to die trying." She said, her eyes hardening as she ran through the memories.

"The things I fought on the planet would make anyone fearful, but I knew I was doomed either way, and that gave me the strength I needed. That, and by that point my suit was infected with Phazon, including the weapon systems. I was unstoppable."

"How did you destroy Phaze?" John asked quietly, finally speaking up.

"I…it was close. The planet had created a copy of me, which was connected with the planets core. We were matched in almost every way. But I managed to defeat it, and when it died, so did Phaze. Not only that, but the Phazon inside me died as well, giving me my mind and body back. I managed to escape just as the planet exploded." She said quietly, obviously not cheerful about her victory.

"After that, I returned to the Federation to tell them what had happened. I learnt that Phazon across the Galaxy had vanished. I honestly thought that would be the end of it. I was so wrong…"

"What happened next? Is this when it became the flood?"

She nodded, sighing.

"Yeah, it turns out small pools of the stuff had survived Phazes destruction, and had fermented, aged I guess. It was no longer Phazon, but Flood. And of course, that was when the Forerunners attacked, and the rest is history." She finished, turning to look at him.

John could hardly process what he had just heard, all of it sounding amazing and horrifying at the same time. This poor woman, who had been subjected to the worse things imaginable, was still standing, still fighting. John would never question her attitude towards their enemies again. He also had newfound respect for her, deciding she must be one hell of a warrior to emerge from all that.

"In any event, Adam has all the details. Recordings, data files etc. I'll hand them over to the UNSC after all this is over, maybe they can learn something useful." She sighed, firing her Power Beam to the side. A Grunt who had been hiding as they drove past cried out as a hole appeared in his chest.

A large group of Brutes were ahead, all of them noticing the Warthog advancing. They roared out challenges and raised their weapons. Before John could even blink, Samus fired a salvo of Super Missiles, the large group simply vanishing under the explosions. They continued driving undisturbed, any remaining enemies too weary to come out. Silence reigned once again, John still processing everything Samus had told him.

"Why are you here?" He asked her after a while.

"What do you mean?"

"You have done so much, been through so much. You're not a soldier, so why are you here? Why not go find somewhere quiet to live or something?"

She didn't answer straight away, the question seeming to catch her off guard. When she did, her face expression was one of determination.

"Because I made a promise to someone. That I would help save this Galaxy. And besides, I may not be a soldier, but I will never turn my back on Humanity, not when I'm needed."

John nodded. He understood that, as a soldier it was his duty to protect Humanity. Samus was no different it seemed, just coming at it from a different approach.

"That's all I wanted to know" He replied quietly. Her expression changed suddenly, looking like she wanted to ask a difficult question.

"Hey John?" Samus asked, her voice odd.

"Hmm?"

"Why were you referring to yourself in third person just then? You know, 'John wants to know' and stuff?"

He frowned, not understanding.

"What? That wasnt me, Cortana said that."

"John...Cortana isnt here, remember?"

He stiffened, foot still on the pedal. She wasnt here. She was still on High Charity, as far as he knew. So, what had he heard when she was speaking earlier? Did he really speak in third person? His mind was reeling.

"John? John are you ok?" Samus asked, sounding concerned now.

He didnt answer, choosing to remain quiet. She was facing him fully now, looking ready to push the subject, when the radio came to life, startling them both.

"Chief? Samus? Can either of you hear me?" The familiar voice of Miranda Keyes called out. John grabbed the radio of the dashboard.

"Were here ma'am" He replied, glad to finally get in touch with someone they were looking for.

"What's your location?

"We're on the Highway ma'am, heading towards the town of Voi."

"Good, continue towards Voi, we will meet you there." Miranda replied before cutting off.

John gunned the engine, even at this speed it would take a while to reach the town still. He looked at Samus, and she looked at him. She smirked under her visor.

"Want to play eye spy?"


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey all! Look whos back? And so quickly too, you must be shocked. This next part was one I was really looking forward to writing, so I made time to do just that. And hey, you get two chapters when you would usually get one, how awesome is that?**

**Alright, comments time.**

** Silversliced-rain: Thank you. I corrected those mistakes the moment you told me, please keep telling me of any mistakes you find :)**

** Quathis: Thanks! I try to fit all sorts of easter eggs in my writing *cough Carmine dying cough*. The Phazon thing wasnt too hard to make a connection with, the ING are techinally a Phazon offshoot, so I figured the flood could be too.**

** Darkendone2: Thank you, I try :P**

** Blaiseingfire: Yes, Johns little insane moments are my take on what you see when you play the game, those moments where Cortana flashes on the screen. I figured if John was actually suffering a kind of mental breakdown instead, it would make for a more interesting plot.**

** PICH21: Yes he did. Johns pretty much imagining Cortana is there and speaking. A kind of Post Traumatic stress or Seperation Anxiety if you will. Its just an interesting plot device to have until they rescue her.**

**Alright, as usual, I dont own Halo or Metroid. Nothings changed there, unfortunately. Now read on and enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Four

"I spy…"

"The Warthog." Samus groaned, drumming her fingers on the side of the vehicle. He had used this one before, three times now. Turns out the rigid soldier sucked at ride games, who knew?

John seemed to grumble, going quiet as he drove. They had been driving for ages now, it felt. They had met up with a marine convoy, and joined them as they headed to this Voi place. That was exciting, for a couple of moments.

Samus gazed around at the tunnel they now were all in, which was apparently the gateway to Voi. And like she had many times now, got sick of looking at the cracked concrete, dirty pavement and busted ceiling lights. So, she would turn her gaze to look at John, the only thing on this ride she still felt was interesting.

John had acted…weird in the last few hours. First he had spoken like he was Cortana, and then almost denied she wasn't with them now. She felt sorry for him, and slightly worried.

"Adam? What's your take on this?" She asked her old A.I friend.

"Well, Cortana and I traded a lot of information, so I have a basic understanding. The both of them have been together virtually her whole life, roughly four years. And I mean, together, never separate. This is the first time."

Samus understood a little better now, it would be hard to separate from anyone after spending so long with them. But that didn't explain why he was acting so odd. She waited for Adam to continue.

"She also told me about the SPARTAN-II program, and I'll just say now, it's pretty extreme." He muttered, sounding like the topic unnerved him.

"What do you mean?"

"A scientist theorized that Humans could be enhanced physically and mentally through intense bio augmentation. However, only a select few had the genes to match the requirements. Also…the candidates had to receive them before maturing."

Samus didn't like where this was going, but she remained silent. She was finally going to learn about her strange companion, and she wasn't going to stop because of a bad feeling.

"So the UNSC commissioned her to abduct trainees, roughly 300, all aged six or seven. The kids were trained for life in the military, stripped of everything else. Taught how to fight, how to fire weapons, how to be soldiers. And when they were about fourteen, they underwent the enhancements. Only seventy five of them survived the ordeal as intended."

Samus couldn't speak. That was horrible, it was disgusting. How could the UNSC do that to its own people? Those poor kids…poor John. No wonder he acted like a robot. He couldn't feel, he didn't have a childhood. Samus had lost her parents young too, but she was still loved, still got to have a childhood and experience life before growing up and killing things. And no wonder he wasn't coping with Cortana being absent, she's probably the only thing he has an emotional connection too. She was going to ask Adam for details, when they finally emerged from the tunnel, and into Voi.

They had arrived in a large, industrial looking area, huge factories dominating as far as the eye could see. The convoy pulled up in a parking lot near the closest building, the marines hopping out and preparing themselves, checking weapons, forming plans etc.

Samus jumped out of the car, glad to be free from the confines of its uncomfortable chair. She stretched, waking her body up, making sure she was ready for whatever lay inside. John walked up to her slowly, waiting for her to stop before he spoke.

"The commander told me the plan. The Covenant have AA batteries set up all along the length of the industrial area. We need to get in there and take them out, crate a path for the Admirals ships."

She turned to look behind her, looking out into the distance, at the only thing that wasn't a factory. The Covenant had cleared out the huge section of this city, its surface flat and molten. Samus narrowed her eyes slightly, she knew what this was. Both Humans and Forerunners had used similar plasma weaponry back in her time. She watched as ships continued to glass the area, all of them orbiting a huge Forerunner structure, obviously what they were digging for.

She turned back to John, and nodded, her cannon lighting up.

"Consider it done." She said solemnly.

John nodded, and after a pause, turned to make his way towards the marines, who had gathered by one of the large doors. Samus followed, eager to get in there. The marines had just been discussing the plan, and now told John and herself. They were going to bring one of the Warthogs in, using the chain gun to clear away anything that tried to stop them.

The doors opened, and they all rushed in, everyone opening fire as a couple of Grunts were taken completely by surprise, standing no chance. A Jackal appeared in an archway above the next door, letting out a screech and opening fire, its shield flaring to life. The marines took cover, a couple swearing.

"We need that door open, now!" One of them shouted.

"Leave it to me." Samus said. She rushed forward and jumped up onto the archway, scaring the hell out of the Jackal. She killed it swiftly with a shot from her Power Beam, before looking around for the controls. She found them pretty quick, a large green button. She pressed it, the button turning red and making a beep.

The doors opened, revealing many more Grunts and Jackals in the next room. The marines all hid behind the Warthog, which slowly began to advance, its chain gun tearing up the unprepared aliens. Soon they all lay dead. A marine went to the next door, pressing its control button. This one led into a long hallway, and the enemies here seemed a lot more prepared for them.

Brutes were at the rear, roaring and puffing out their chests in challenge. Jackals with shields were up front, forming a bullet proof wall, with Grunts scattered throughout their ranks. No way around them, they would have to push through. Samus caught John's eye, and smirked.

"Race you."

She rushed forward, ducking and dodging the plasma fire that was sent her way. John quickly caught up to her, and the both of them running towards the Covenant seemed to unnerve them. The Grunts screamed, throwing weapons and running away. Even a few Jackals abandoned their post, turning to flee. The both of them crashed into the shield wall, Samus lashing out with kicks and her cannon. John simply crushed his opponents, weighing over a ton in his armor. His punches broke bone, and his kicks caved skulls in. The Brutes roared angrily, advancing on the two, before being mowed down by the Warthogs chain gun. The fight was over pretty quick, no time spent celebrating.

The next door opened to the outside, a large outer area where docks once were, the ground underneath them bare. Samus was confused for a moment before realizing there must have been water here once, and that the glassing beams must have evaporated it all. This pissed her off slightly, but she needed to focus on the fight at hand. John gestured for her to come over to him, the Spartan gazing down at the ground below them.

"That's the AA." He grunted, pointing to a Wraith with brown coloring, firing up into the sky.

"Take that out, I'll remain up here and cover you." He informed her, reloading his rifle. She nodded, jumping down to the ground, landing on the wet earth with a thud.

She immediately began sprinting for the Wraith, the alien tank unaware of her advance. She had just about reached it when something rammed her from the side, slamming her into a nearby wall. It was a Ghost, a small purple vehicle the Covenant used, manned by a Grunt.

"Little bastard." Samus growled, trying to free her cannon arm to shoot at it. Both arms were pinned, and the Grunt kept boosting into her, preventing her from pushing back.

It laughed manically, before its head exploded, bright blue blood gushing from its wound. Samus looked up and spotted John, a sniper rifle in hand. He gave her a wave, before bringing the rifle up and firing again, taking out another Ghost pilot. She grunted, pushing the now inactive Ghost off her. She turned to the Wraith, and continued her sprint. The Brute on the turret saw her, but didn't get a chance to fire, or even shout, his head encased in a charged Ice Beam shot. Jumping out on the canopy of the Wraith, she switched to her Plasma Beam, firing charge shot after charge shot. She could hear the Brute inside screaming, the hatch above it melting and pouring ontop of it.

The Wraith stopped moving, powering down. She had done her job, hopping off and checking her surroundings. She spotted John and the marines now at the other end of the compound, another Wraith pinning them behind cover. She ran to help them, covering the ground quickly. A lone Ghost boosted towards her, intend on trying to ram her.

'Not this time.' She thought to herself.

Just as it neared, she jumped, flipping over the purple battering ram. As she passed over the top, she fired, molten plasma burning the Grunt pilot, and then melting his too. The Ghost continued going forward, crashing into the wall nearby. She landed, and looked up at the Wraith. With a smile, she realized it was within her firing range. Charging her cannon, she fired a Super Missile right into its rear, penetrating its hull and causing the tank to explode from the inside, almost being torn in half.

She re-joined the others, the marines wide eyed and mouths open. She couldn't help but feel a little smug.

"Good work. The next couple are that way." John grunted, getting up from his cover, signaling the marines to join him.

"You're welcome." She grumbled, moving to catch up.

The next room was empty, an unusual thing after fighting hard to get in here. Did the Covenant not this area simply because they assumed nobody would make it this far? Samus highly doubted that, and so kept her eye open. John seemed to be in the same mindset, not relaxing his weapon and glancing everywhere. The marines had no such qualms, and one pressed the button for the next room.

The next room was also empty, and the doorway across was open. Samus's trap sense was going off. This reminded her of the many times the Space Pirates had tried to capture her, in fact this was just like it. She watched the marines and the Warthog advance, John seeming to hesitate. She was racking her brains, trying to figure out what this was reminding her of. She had been trapped in a room, and the pirates had…

The doors slammed shut, trapping the marines on the other side. John rushed forward, slamming a fist into the door, its metal denting. With a chill, Samus remembered. They had dropped down from above.

Screams echoed from the other side, the sounds of gunfire prominent. John hit the button, the door slowly opening. Samus switched to Morph ball, rolling under the small gap and emerging in the other room. She switched back, and what she saw chilled her.

They had indeed attacked from the roof. Dozens of bug like things were flying around, firing plasma weapons at the marines. The Warthog was busted, covered in plasma burns, as were its passengers. Marine bodies were everywhere, save a few who had managed to find cover.

"Drones!" John shouted as he followed her in, rising his rifle and opening fire. The Drones all screeched, turning their attention on the new comers. They were all clustered together, and this gave Samus an idea.

She switched to her Ice Beam, charging up a shot. Before firing however, she also fired a missile. This was something she had done before, she liked to call it 'Ice Spreader'.

The Drones stood no chance, virtually all of them being hit by the instant freeze explosive. They all dropped like rocks out of the sky, some even shattering as they hit the floor. She fired another Ice Spreader, this time at the roof, sealing it and preventing any more surprise attackers from gaining entry. The room was silent, save for marine's rapid breathing. They slowly emerged from their hiding places and looked around. The majority of them had died, the surprise attack catching them off guard.

Samus sighed, this was not good. They didn't have many, making the next part all the more hard.

"Come on, we need to move." John said emotionlessly, moving for the next room. The Marines followed, their training kicking in. Samus took one last look around the room, looking at all the bodies. Suppressing her anger, she followed the group, more than happy to leave that place behind.

* * *

"Hmm." John said, surveying the scene before them. He was probably thinking how much trouble they were in, and Samus agreed.

They had come out into another large, open area. This time another group of marines were up on a high wall, firing down at the enemy below. The AA Wraiths were now firing back at the marines instead of at the sky, causing a crossfire with a huge middle ground to cover.

"John, why don't you get these men to the others, I'll take the Wraiths." She said, checking she had enough missiles.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I can do it. Nothing fancy, just destroy them. And then I'll make my way up to you"

He nodded reluctantly, before grouping up the marines to tell them the plan. When they were all ready, they would run out at once. The Enemy would focus on Samus, and John would lead the marines to safety, up on the wall with the others. John gave them all one last look, then issued the command.

"Go."

They all ran, Samus running right for the tanks. She ducked and dodged fire from both sides, aware the marines up on the wall either couldn't see her, or didn't recognize her as an ally. She kept true to her word, nothing fancy. She fired a Super Missile into the front of the first one, its front half exploding out in a rain of shrapnel. She ran for the other one, which was still firing at the marines.

"Samus…" She heard John call out over the radio, but she was too busy. She could answer him after this bitch of a tank was dead. She fired another Super Missile into its side, causing it to blow out. One of the Brute pilots managed to climb out, only to be charged by an angry Samus. She shot it dead, firing more Power Beam shots than needed.

"Samus!"

"What?!" She shouted, annoyed at John's insistence.

"You need to get back here, now."

"Why what's…" She started saying, before a loud boom interrupted her. She turned, and her eyes widened.

A huge, and she meant huge, purple thing was climbing down the wall, unaware of the marines under it. It had four huge legs, and had a head resting on top of its body, a single glowing eye glaring down at her. It moved towards her, right towards her.

"You need to run Samus. Run!" John shouted from the radio, and Samus did just that, diving into an old storm drain just as where she had been standing turned into super-heated plasma, a large green beam impacting the ground.

Whatever this thing was, reminded her of the good old days. When she killed giant monsters for a living. This thing was mechanical, obviously some kind of Covenant super vehicle, but still, it reminded her of those days.

She sat there, regaining her breath as she heard the thing begin to turn around. She used this opportunity to peek out. It was now focusing on the marines, who were trying their best to fight it, but it was like an ant fighting a bear, no use. She switched to her scan visor, which was now connected to the UNSC data base, as well as her own private information, curtesy of Adam.

**[Morphology: Type 47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platform (commonly called Scarab).  
Heavily armored unit designed as a mobile fortress. It's designed is for attacking heavily defended structures and to provide quick and powerful support to Covenant ground troops. The Scarab is powered by a central core, comprised of plasma energy and Lekgolo worms. Weak spots are central core and legs, causing damage to the legs will force it to lower itself for repairs, allowing it to be boarded.]**

Samus was processing this when the Scarab fired again, melting part of the wall the marines were hiding behind. John's voice crackled through the radio.

"Samus? Samus where are you?"

"I'm fine, I managed to hide in a storm drain. What's the situation?"

"Bad, this thing will destroy the wall, and our cover in another shot or two, and it has soldiers on it firing at us as well."

Samus cursed, thinking. It needed to be taken out, meaning it needed to be boarded. It had soldiers already on it, and it was about to destroy the wall. She needed to act quickly.

"John, if I can board it, can you either take out or distract the enemies onboard?"

There was a pause, before John answered quietly.

"Consider it done."

She rushed out of her cover, seeing that no soldiers were looking at her, and the Scarab itself was more than focused on the marines. She fired several super missiles into one of its back legs, causing the thing to begin turning around. She ran forward, getting underneath it before it saw her, and fired several more missile into the same leg. The sounds of breaking armor rewarded her, and the Scarab seemed to groan. It slowly began to lower itself, and Samus rolled out from underneath it, avoiding being crushed. With a flick of her wrist, Samus sent her Grapple Beam towards one of the ledges on the side of it, gaining purchase.

She flew up, landing in front of one startled Grunt. Before it could even blink, she lashed out with a kick, sending it flying of the edge and to its death. She guessed that its core would be towards the back, where it had the most armor, and as she followed the walkway, she realized she was correct. The core glowed ominously, the worms mentioned in the logbook circled around it. She charged her Wave Beam, firing the Wave Buster at the core. The purple stream of electricity began frying everything, the worms shrieking and curling up as they burnt. She continued firing, the core beginning to crack under the strain. It suddenly gave out, exploding in a small blue flame, and an alarm began echoing out. In her history, that usually meant things were about to explode.

She ran, rushing towards the front of the Scarab, running right past panicking crew members. She saw the marines and John, all looking up at the Scarab as its body began to fail, several fire beginning to erupt from it, the beeping increasing. She made it to its edge, but didn't stop. She jumped, soaring through the air as she flipped, landing on her knee with the others, having just enough time to hide behind the wall before everything turned white and blue. The noise was deafening, her ears echoing moments after it happened. When the brightness faded, she peered over the wall, and was happy to see the Scarab was now in pieces, legs and carapace scattered everywhere.

She took a few breaths, gathering her thoughts. An armored hand emerged into her view, causing her to look up. John stood above her, offering her a hand up. She took it, letting the Spartan hoist her up in one swift movement.

"Good job." John said, and from the way he said it, she could tell he meant it.

"No worries, just like old times." She said with a smile, deactivating her helmet to get some air. The feeling of the breeze was cold, but pleasant. She glazed out at the destruction, enjoying the momentary peace.

"So what next?" She asked eventually.

"We wait here, a Pelican is on its way with reinforcements." He informed her, before turning to answer a marine's question.

She turned to look up, and sure enough, she saw the Pelican in the distance, coming ever closer. It touched down at the base of the wall, its back hatch opening and a few marines coming out. She thought that would be it, so she was surprised when two more people emerge from within the drop ship. One was huge, covered in gray armor, and had mandibles. The other was human, with dark skin and a cigar in his grinning mouth. Samus smiled, knowing both of them, and happy to see them.

"Johnson, Arbiter. What are you both doing here?" She asked, jumping down to meet them. John followed shortly after, using a ramp instead.

"Hey there pretty lady. The Commander thought you could use some back up, though it looks like you don't need it…" Johnson said, trailing off as he looked at the remains of the Scarab. The Arbiter also looked.

"Indeed, an impressive feat, killing a Scarab. Well done Hunter." He said in his monotone voice, nodding in respect.

John joined them, greeting them both. The Arbiter nodded to him as well, and Johnson just chuckled and puffed on his cigar.

"What is the plan, Spartan?" The Arbiter asked.

"There is one last AA gun in the next area, we neutralize that, and the Admirals ships can attack." He said with a nod, checking his weapons. Johnson chuckled again.

"Think it will be that easy?" He asked.

"No, the Covenant will probably be regrouping around it, meaning we will have another fight on our hands." John replied.

"Good. Wouldn't want this to get dull now would we?" The Sargent chuckled, winking at Samus.

She rolled her eyes, but smirked. John had begun ordering the marines to advance, and with a nod to the rest, they all followed suit. They walked in silence, passing the bodies of both Covenant and Human as they made their way forward through the next area. They had passed several rooms in silence, no enemies present. They eventually made their way back outside, and found out why.

The Covenant had indeed gathered all its remaining soldiers in the area, all of them crowded around the huge AA gun, which they could see in the not too far distance. They advanced slowly, trying to get as close as possible before being spotted. They didn't get far, as a group of Brutes led by a chieftain walked around a bend, spotting them.

The chieftain roared, pulling a Gravity Hammer from its back and charging, the rest of the Brutes not far behind. John rushed forward, meeting the Brute leader head on. He ducked a swing, launching an upper cut into the Brutes jaw, stunning it. And then John grabbed the hammer.

The Brute went wide eyed, and didn't try to flee as John struck in in the chest, it body being sent flying. John then went for the next nearest Brute, crushing its head. The rest were gunned down, Samus freezing one solid. John smacked the ice as he ran past, shattering it into a million pieces.

They moved up, fighting uphill to reach the AA gun. Grunts had places plasma cannons all over their position, firing down at them. Samus disposed of them, charged Wave Beam shots frying the little guys. The Arbiter was up ahead with John, the both of them slicing and crushing enemies respectively. Johnson was in the middle, shooting his shotgun while laughing like he was at an amusement park.

They soon made it to the gun, a large group of Brutes gathered underneath it, prepared to make a final stand. It wasn't very great, as Samus fired a Super Missile at their position, the Brutes simply vanishing in the explosion. They all looked at the AA gun, its huge, glowing core visible and exposed.

"Do it." John grunted at her.

She fired another Super Missile into the core, the whole thing collapsing and the guns power deactivating. There, that was it. They had done it. The group moved to overlook the dig site in the distance, the far off ships seemingly unaware of the attack about to happen. Samus glanced at her companions, secretly happy to get a moment of peace. Of course, that peace was shattered as several Human frigates flew in from behind them, their huge MAC cannons opening fire on the Artifact.

"All ships, open fire." They all heard Lord Hood command.

As they fired, the artifact seemed to react. It started to shift, and glow. A bright light shot up into the sky, and a small sphere of light began to grow above it. Samus was mesmerized, until she saw a shockwave heading their way. The ships in the distance rocked with the force, and it was headed right for them.

"Everyone hang on!" She shouted, just as they were all blown off their feet, slamming into the rocks behind them. Samus hit the ground with a grunt, looking up to check on the others. The Arbiter was already up, helping a grumbling Johnson get to his feet. She got up, and moved to help John, who was still on the ground.

He didn't react when she reached him, she knelt down next to him and gave him a shake, trying to wake him up. He muttered, and she moved closer to try and hear what he was saying.

"This, is the way the world ends…"

She blinked, confused, before shrugging it off as his brain just getting rattled.

"John? John wake up."

He grunted, lifting his head slightly, before helping himself up.

"I'm ok…" He said after a moment pause, something Samus picked up on. But she didn't think about it too much, turning to see what had happened to the Artifact.

The ball of light had formed a massive portal, hovering just above the dig site. Samus saw a small Forerunner ship, the Prophet of Truths ship, begin to escape through it.

"What did Truth just do? Did he activate the rings?" An angry lord hood shouted over the radio.

"No sir. But he certainly did something…" Miranda Keyes replied, also on the radio.

Samus heard a faint gasp, and turned to see Johnson looking up, away from the Portal. They all looked up to see what he was looking at. A lone ship had appeared, flying ever lower to the ground. At first, she assumed it was a Covenant ship, but as it got closer, she saw it had fleshy tendrils attached to it, and its coloring was off. As it sank towards the ground, a chill rang up her spine. No, it couldn't be…

It crashed in the distance, back the way they had come, and the feeling of dread in Samus's stomach increased. She could be wrong, she hoped she was wrong…

"What is it? More Brutes?" The Arbiter asked, activating his sword once again.

John shared a look with Samus, and from his body posture, she could tell he knew as well. Her heart sank.

"Worse."

He began walking, making his way back the way they had come. Samus followed, quelling the fear she felt, the others behind her. As they walked, the sky darkened, and the only noise that broke the silence were screams and shrieks in the distance.


	6. Chapter 5

**Hello all! Yes I know, long time no see. Things are still tough, but I'm writing as fast as I can. I know exactly what I want to write, the problem is just finding time lol.**

**Anyway, won't keep you here long, lets jump right into the chapter!**

**I own no rights to Halo, Metroid, or any other references I may make.**

* * *

Chapter 5

John's mind had gone numb, the sight of the downed ship causing his blood to run cold. He walked on in silence, not bothering to check if the others were behind him or not. It could only have been one thing, the only logical explanation to its strange appearance, and the distance noises of horror he could hear.

The Flood.

If the Flood was here, they needed to act fast. The entire world was at risk of infection if they couldn't figure out how to stop it here and now. John didn't actually have a plan in mind, yet. And so he kept walking, tracing his steps back toward the factories.

"We could overload the ships engine, destroy the infection at its source." 'Cortana' told him.

John groaned. He knew she wasn't there, and yet he kept hearing her as if she was right there with them. He felt a tick of pain from behind his forehead.

"Shut up." He growled.

"What was that?" Samus asked, her face visible underneath her visor. Her eyebrow was raised, and she was looking at him like she wasn't sure she had heard him correctly.

"It's nothing." He grunted, glancing over his shoulder to look at her. Her usual bravado was gone, her every movement careful. She continually glanced around, eyeing corners and dark, hidden areas. Her eyes held…something. John wasn't quite sure what. He remembered her back on Halo, in the presence of the Gravemind.

She had seemed so…nervous. The woman who charged vehicles, took on whole squads of enemies and won had been…afraid, he realized. She was scared of the Flood.

"She has a right to, you know? After the things she's seen." 'Cortana' commented.

"Shut up, you're not real."

"Well that's hurtful. In any event, you know I'm right. We need to reach that ship."

John didn't answer. He didn't want to listen to a voice in his head, and yet he couldn't think of a better option.

"So do you have a plan John?" Samus asked, looking like she was ready to start shooting at shadows at any moment.

"Yeah…we need to reach that ship, overload its engine." He told them all. He felt like 'Cortana' make a noise of satisfaction, but he brushed it off.

"Spartan, there will be many parasites between us and our goal." The Arbiter said, the light of his sword piercing the darkness before them, flickering off the ground and walls.

"We can do it…we have to." He said, rounding a corner. He stopped in his tracks.

Bodies, a lot of bodies littered the floor. Most were human, faces frozen in a look of terror. A few, were no longer human. Limbs disfigured, bodies twisted and distorted, it seemed the Flood had wasted no time in beginning to spread.

Samus gasped as her eyes fell on them, moving to take a step closer. John grabbed her arm, stopping her. She looked back at her, anger flaring in her eyes for but a moment.

"We…need to check that their dead." John told her. The rage faded, replaced by sadness. But she nodded, and took a step back.

John brought up his rifle, no ceremony needed, and fired one shot into each of the bodies. None got up. It seemed these people had died to ensure the few Flood here wouldn't run off and infect more people. They all heard shouts and gunfire coming from the nearest building, and glancing back at the others, John took off, hearing the others right behind him.

They ran through the nearest door, bursting in. The door opened up on a platform, which overlooked the rest of the factory floor, connected by stairs. What they saw below looked straight out of a horror movie. Marines ran for their lives, firing their guns over their shoulder, some just dropping their weapons and running. Infected chased them, tearing apart those they caught. Little infection forms dove into the chest cavities of the dead, beginning to bring them back to life, another soldier for the swarm.

"We need to get down there." John said, making his way for the stairs. He saw Samus jump of the platform completely, crushing a combat form beneath her. Others whirled on her, shrieking and rushing her, no concern for their own safety. Samus opened fire, Power Beam shots shredding them apart. But more kept coming.

With a curse, John leapt of the stairs, running to her side. He opened fire with his own weapon. Together, they created a crossfire, slowly moving forward as the flood fell from continuous fire. Arbiter and Johnson remained close, shotgun and energy sword culling any that got too close. They continued in this fashion, slowly advancing. A loud screech echoed throughout the building, and the remaining flood turned and ran, crawling back into dark crevices and into the ceiling.

An eerie silence filled the room, everyone not letting their guard down. John glanced around the room, rifle still raised. He noticed that none of the marines had lived, all of them either becoming infected, or being too torn up to be brought back. He swallowed, pushing emotions down and away, keeping his mind clear and focused.

"This way." He called out, making his way the next section of the building. The place was quiet, but John didn't relax. He made sure to check his corners, keeping an eye on any dark places. He occasionally glanced behind him, checking on the others.

Johnson's face was grim, but he seemed ok, puffing on a cigar and looking around wearily. The Arbiter still had his sword drawn, eye's flicking around the room. He moved like a big cat, large feet not making any noise as he moved. His movements were slow, in control. Out of all of them, he seemed the calmest. Samus seemed as twitchy as ever, jumping slightly at every noise. She must have been so afraid, and yet she kept her composure. Once again, she impressed him.

"So, if we pull this off, what happens next?" She asked out loud, her voice not betraying how she obviously felt.

"Well I imagine we're gonna go through that glowy portal princess." Johnson chuckled grimly. He puffed on his cigar one last time, before letting it fall out of his mouth, the bud landing on the floor.

"Yes. We need to give chase to the lair." Arbiter said, John kept his eyes forward, not taking part in this conversation.

"I figured as much…and don't call me princess."

Johnson chuckled, not commenting. John heard Samus grumble, but a noise ahead made them all shut up. Everyone raised their weapons, all pointing in the direction the sound was coming from. From a dark, ill lit corridor nearby, was the sound of a voice. Just one. It sounded like it was on the verge of shouting, and John couldn't make out what it was saying. He made his way slowly towards the corridor, gun still raised.

"John…be careful…" Samus said, remaining where she was.

"I'm fine. I just want to see if I-"

He was cut off, tentacles lashing out from the dark and latching onto him. John tugged, but couldn't free himself from its grip. He was pulled off his feet and back towards the dark corridor. As he entered, he saw what was waiting for him. Dozens of combat forms had been concealed in the shadows, all of them now roaring and clawing at him. The one holding him threw him against a wall, his shields flaring. The continuous assault had almost drained his shields entirely, and he saw infection forms in the rear, waiting for a chance to burrow into his chest.

John rose, crushing the head of one of his attackers. But more filled the gap, knocking him back down. The wave of bodies was too much, and for the first time in ages, John felt real fear. He couldn't move, couldn't break free. He lashed out with his fists, crushing and breaking anything they came into contact with, but he didn't make a dent in their numbers. The fear increased, he wasn't going to win this time.

A bright light filled the corridor, the Flood momentarily falling back. An armored hand grabbed his, throwing him across the ground, back into the room with the others. He shot up immediately, to meet the alarmed faces of Johnson and the Arbiter. John turned, back to the corridor. He could barely make out her armor in amongst the darkness, and bodies.

"She saved me. She traded places with me…"

A loud explosion erupted from the doorway, more light filling the hall. Samus came flying out, a combat form still clinging to her. She flipped, causing it to lose its grip. She fired her cannon before landing, hot plasma melting it instantly. She landed and whirled, firing wildly into the hallway. She was panting, wild eyed. The screeches coming from the corridor faded, the Flood retreating under her onslaught. Eventually she stopped firing, still panting and not lowering her cannon.

"You ok you two?" Johnson asked.

She whirled, cannon now raised at Johnson. He shouted in alarm, taking a step back. She kept it pointed at him, her face set in a snarl, before blinking a few times, and slowly lowering it. She took several deep breathes, slowly regaining her composure.

"Sorry…" She managed, before making her way to John, offering a hand to help him. He took it, not quite sure what to say.

"Thanks." He settled on, his stoic composure returning. She simply nodded, turning her back on him and moving back to the corridor.

"It's clear." She said, monotone. Her visor flashed briefly, probably using one of her visor modes to check the darkness. John nodded, moving back in. He moved slowly, worried they might be ambushed again, but the Flood were nowhere to be seen. They emerged at the end of the corridor, into another room. John recognized this as the room just before the open area they had destroyed the Scarab in.

A whimper caught his attention. He turned sharply, rifle raised. In a corner, huddled up, was a lone marine. He was hugging himself, babbling incoherently. They all gathered around him, John kneeling down in front of him.

"Soldier? Tell me what happened." He ordered.

The marine continued talking to himself, oblivious to their presence. John was considering moving on when the man suddenly screamed, looking up at all of them. He drew a pistol. John moved to grab the weapon, but he was too late.

The marine's chest caved in, a yellow shot of energy killing him instantly. John got up quick and turned. Everyone was eyeing Samus, her cannon still giving off heat from the shot she had just fired.

"He didn't need to die." John said, angered that she could just kill him so easily.

"He was already dead." She said sadly. She looked down at the body a moment longer, before making her way out, walking outside before anyone could say anything.

John looked at the others. Johnson seemed shocked, but didn't say anything. The Arbiter on the other hand, was nodding slowly, obviously agreeing with her choice. John didn't like it, but she had probably spared him, either from the Flood or from insanity. He moved to follow her, walking through the doorway to outside. She stood near a railing, staring out at the backdrop. The Portal still hung in the sky, a giant purple sphere against a near black sky.

He turned his attention to their next destination, which led into the very first lot of factories they had moved through. He could easily make out the flood that occupied that area, and there were a lot of them. He glanced at Samus, noting she was also looking in that direction.

"Looks like we have more to kill." She muttered, monotone. John didn't know what to say, or how to react to her dull demeanor, so he simply stood there next to her, the both of them gazing out into the distance.

"How do you do it?" She suddenly asked him, her eyes questioning through her visor.

"Do what?" He asked, not sure what she meant.

"Deal with…all this? You've been very calm, and I know you have faced the Flood before. Why aren't you afraid?"

The question made him uncomfortable, he was not one to open up and share feelings. However, as he looked down at her, he felt a need to explain himself.

"Of course I'm afraid, but no one else can stop this from happening. If I let fear control my actions, who else can get to that ship?"

She didn't answer right away, seeming to dwell on his words. Her hand gripped the railing hard, looking out at the destruction around them once again.

"So that's it? Duty over emotion? Everyone feels…we aren't machines."

The words felt like a punch. It sounded like something Cortana would have told him. He felt a sharp pain in his head, and it was all he could do to suppress a groan as he brought up a hand to his helmet. Samus turned, tilting her head at him. She had no idea what she had done.

"You alright?" She asked him, sounding somewhat confused and concerned.

"I'm fine." He grunted. Before either could say anymore, the Arbiter and Johnson came out to join them.

"I have news" the Arbiter said, his voice booming with something akin to pride. "Sangheili ships are on the way, they should be arriving any moment. They will help us fight the Flood."

The sound of warships could be heard, and right on cue, three carrier ships appeared nearby, more floating in the distance. A proud, booming voice filled their radios.

"This is the carrier, Shadow of Intent. Clear this sector, while we deal with the Flood." The voice ordered. As he spoke, drop pods fell from the ships, all of them crashing into the midst of the Flood. The pods doors opened, and Elites equipped with Swords, Carbines and Plasma Rifles emerged, fighting the Flood head on.

"We need to get down there." John ordered, making his way across the walkway they stood on, heading for the battle. He ran, Samus right beside him. The both of them reached a gap in the railing, both of them jumping down to the ground, and both of them rising up and rushing towards the Elites. Dull thumps behind them confirmed that Johnson and the Arbiter were right behind them.

"Samus, go first. Carve a path for the rest of us to get through." John ordered, the both of them reaching the Elites defensive line together.

She didn't say a word, simply kept running forward. John knelt down, taking aim with his rifle, firing precise bursts into the Floods chests, popping the infection forms within. Samus moved to the front of the group, her cannon charging white. With a bright flash, a large blast of ice erupted from the weapon, freezing a large group of Flood in front of her. She pressed forward, switching to her Wave Beam, purple streaks of electricity sizzling flesh and locking joints.

The Arbiter rushed pass John, Sword drawn. He yelled as he met the Flood, every stroke of his weapon lethal. Johnson moved to beside John, also raising a rifle and providing support from afar. The two of them focused on taking down individuals, while Samus and the Arbiter were destroying whole groups. As the fight continued, the Flood thinned out, which gave the group the opportunity to move forward.

Screeches caught John's attention, and he looked into the distance. A massive group of various Flood forms were charging their position, and by the looks of it, there were more than enough to wipe out the defensive line.

Samus must have seen it too, because she broke off from her current engagement, and rushed toward the new threat.

"Everyone, find cover. Now!" She shouted into the radio. John didn't need to question why, assuming she was about to do something dangerous. He ducked behind a nearby rock, Johnson right behind him.

He wondered what she would do, and was about to chance peeking over his cover, when the ground shook, and his vision went white. The rock he hid behind shuddered, splintering and forming cracks. White noise caused his ears to ring, and at first, his vision was blurry. He looked around, noticing the rest of them seemed to be in similar shape, Johnson groaning and slowly getting up beside him.

He turned to look at where Samus, and the horde of enemies used to be. His eyes widened, unable to comprehend what they saw. Dead Flood lay everywhere, most if not all of them covered in severe burns. And that was on the outward of the explosion, for it certainly had to have been an explosion. In the inner bit, closer to Samus herself, was nothing. No Flood, no rocks or debris, it was barren. Vaporized. Samus herself slowly rose from a small crater, with her in the center. Her armor steamed, vapor pouring off her as well as the ground.

John slowly approached, moving to help her. He extended a hand, which she took, and pulled her up and out of the small hole she had made.

"What was that?" He asked, still looking around at the vast destruction.

"Power bomb. Very powerful, but I can only use it rarely, it has a long recharge." She said, gazing at her handiwork, looking proud. John didn't like how casual she was about the small crater she had made, or the vaporized enemies.

"Something like that needs to be monitored. I want you to tell me when you're going to use that, well in advance."

She snorted, turning and making her way towards the factories ahead. "One man already tried to order my use of abilities, don't bother." She said, turning to look at him and smirk. Chuckling, she continued to walk away. John didn't understand what was funny, but just shrugged to himself, waving his allies over.

They moved forward together, the path virtually clear of any hostiles. The occasional group of infection forms, or a lone combat form moved toward them, but would be quickly gunned down from a mix of ballistic and plasma fire. They moved through the factories in relative silence, save the Elites who muttered to one another. Most of them seemed to be giving Samus glances, though what sort John didn't know. Samus, on her part, completely ignored them. She seemed lost in thought, or perhaps talking to Adam, he realized.

"The man she was referring to was me, Spartan." The gruff, commanding voice of Adam said, coming from his helms speakers.

John had to refrain from falling on his training and call the A.I 'sir', though he personally though Adam deserved it. He had, after all, been a commander of Human forces millennia ago.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Long ago, Samus was assigned to a mission with a squad I led. I ordered her usage of her suits powers, believing it was for the better. On Hindsight, I should have let her be the judge."

John didn't agree with his regret. Samus was clearly powerful, and independent. That could lead to trouble further down the road, someone needed to be able to control her. Adam seemed to read his mind.

"Samus knows when to use an ability. She would never endanger innocent lives, even if it was for the greater good. It was something that always put her at ends with Federation Command." He chuckled. "It's better to trust her then to try and control her. It never ends well."

John still felt like letting her 'dictate' her own orders was a bad idea, but Adam was obviously more knowledgeable about the subject. And he did have a point. The moment she had pulled him out of the Flood swarm, traded places with him, was still fresh in his mind. She must have been terrified, and yet she had done it anyway.

John thoughts were interrupted by one of the Elites, who had moved ahead of the group.

"Look, there is the ship" He boomed, everyone else moving to join him. They all stood in a doorway, the very first one they had walked through John remembered. Where the carpark had been, was destroyed rubble, large ship parts lay scattered all over the area.

And then there was the ship. It certainly had not survived its landing. The hull was torn in several locations, loose wires and cables sparking in the distance. The ship itself was not very far from their location. In fact, they could reach it in a few minutes if they hurried. The immediate area seemed barren of Flood, someone which alerted John. This could easily be a trap.

"Eyes open everyone. Move slowly towards the ship, check every corner and crevice." He grunted. The Elites went first, the Arbiter behind them. John, Samus and Johnson brought up the rear. John kept his rifle ready, Johnson doing the same. Samus's cannon flashed, the highlights changing to an angry red, her Plasma Beam.

And while they were more than ready for any Flood, none tried to attack. They walked in tense silence, and soon made it to the wreckage. Up close, this ship was massive. Certainly not the largest, but still huge. Samus quickly pointed out an opening they all could get through, a part of the ship's hull which had bent and formed an almost ramp, leading right to a huge hole in its side.

They made their way up, arriving at the top. John glanced down into the hole, the bottom of it near black.

"Alright, I'll go first. Samus, I want you to-"

John was cut off, the sounds of chilling screams silencing him. They all whirled, just in time to see several, massive Flood forms finish off the Elites they had grabbed. Roaring, the things lumbered forward, more and more Flood pouring in behind them.

"Damn, this was a trap" John growled, looking back down the hole. The Flood had been clever, luring them in, only to corner them. They had been so close to their goal.

"John, jump down! We can hold them off!" Samus shouted, firing Plasma shots into the ever approaching Horde. Screams answered her fire, and the Flood continued to swarm towards them. John was unsure, feeling like he should stay to help.

"John, trust me."

He looked at her, and she looked at him. Her eyes shouted worry, but grim determination. She was going to hold them off, no matter the cost. John eventually nodded.

"Alright…save a few for me."

She laughed, turning to face the Horde. They swarmed against the Elites defense, some breaking through rushing up the ramp. "Sorry, their all mine." She said, grinning, before running forward and firing. John whirled to the hole and jumped, wasting no more time.

He fell through the darkness for a few seconds, before landing on soft ground. Turning his headlights on, he realized the floor was just more Flood matter. Suppressing a shudder, he got up slowly and moved forward. The sounds of battle echoed faintly from above, but John paid them no mind, continuing down the corridor he had emerged in.

The inside of the ship was like something out of a horror movie, dead bodies lay strewn about, and Flood matter covered everything. John was glad he didn't have to smell any of it, for it must have been horrendous.

He soon emerged into a large chamber, the roof of which lay exposed, torn off during the crash. John looked up at the sky, noting how calm it seemed. He began making his way across the room, his boots making squish noises against the floor. He scanned the room, looking for another exit.

A voice suddenly spoke to him.

It wasn't like when he thought he heard Cortana. This felt more…sinister. The voice was deep, and soft. Yet, threatened violence. John felt like he had heard it before, and it only took him a moment's pause to remember the voices owner.

The Gravemind.

"Do not be afraid. I am Peace. I am salvation." It whispered to him. John shuddered. The Gravemind couldn't be on Earth…could it? He kept walking, determined to make it across the room now. It spoke again.

"I am a timeless chorus. Join your voice with mine, assume victory everlasting."

John ignored it, continuing to march across the room. Just as he made it half way, a flash caught his eye. He turned, looking at the small, container like structure. Resting on top of it was a small, purple device. It flashed again, a bright blue. Curiosity got the better of him, and he made his way over.

As he neared, the device flashed, and a being appeared. It looked like a small woman, blue in color with short hair. Code ran along her body.

John couldn't believe his eyes.

Was he hallucinating again? Surely he had to be, she couldn't really be here…she couldn't.

"Chief!" Cortana shouted, looking up at him in alarm.

"…Cortana?" John replied, daring to hope.

"High Charity! The Prophets holy city is on-"Cortana started to say, suddenly cutting out. Her figure vanished, and the device stopped flashing.

"Cortana!"

John rushed forward, grabbing the device and lifting it to his eyes. He had no idea how it worked, but he had to figure it out. A low hum interrupted his thoughts. Dropping the device and grabbing his rifle, he turned to face the ceiling. A green Phantom hovered above him, and from it emerged another familiar figure. One far less welcome.

"Reclaimer!" 343 Guilty Spark exclaimed happily, as if they weren't in a Flood infested ship. It turned towards the device, shooting out a gravity beam and attempting to fly off with it. John moved forward, grabbing both.

"Wait. Leave her alone." John warned, his voice low and dangerous.

"If we do not take this device to a safe location"- Spark started, but John interrupted him.

"On Halo, you tried to kill Cortana. And me." He growled, feeling very close to violence.

"Protocol dictated action. She had the activation index, and you were about to destroy my installation…you did destroy my installation." Spark remarked, his metallic voice hinting slight loathing, before continuing. "Now I have only one function. To help you Reclaimer, as I always should have done."

John looked at the device Cortana was in, and reluctantly let go. As much as he hated the floating A.I, he needed Spark to fix the device. Spark hummed happily, moving towards the gravity lift the Phantom had activated, floating up into its belly. John moved into the lift himself, feeling the gentle tug as it pulled him up.

As he emerged, he noted the Samus, Johnson and the Arbiter were also inside, as well as several of the Elites they fought beside. Spark moved to float besides Samus, humming cheerfully. John sighed, moving to join his companions as well. Samus offered him a tired smile, and John suddenly realized how tired he was himself.

As he watched out the viewing screen, his mind wandered, dwelling on recent events. His eyes didn't really register the large ships glassing the Flood infected area, as well as the surrounding area. He slowly sunk down, leaning on a wall of the Phantom. As his eyes fluttered shut, this last thing he thought about was a laughing blue woman, and a woman with bright, blue eyes.


	7. Chapter 6

**Hello everyone! Look, I'm not dead! *Does a little show and dance*. Alright, enough of that...**

**This is mostly a filler chapter than anything else, but fortunately, we're finally up to what I call the meat of Halo 3's Campaign. The Main Course if you will. So stay tuned, hopefully you won't be hanging as long for the next chapters! *Nervous laugher*.**

**Be sure to leave a review telling me what you liked or didn't like, and pretty please Favourite and Follow if you enjoy it!**

**I don't own Halo or Metroid...yet.**

* * *

Chapter 6

"Well Oracle, will it live? Can it be saved?"

Samus watched on as Guilty spark examined the small device John had uncovered inside the flood ship. She wasn't the only one, as several important Human leaders were also present, including Lord Hood himself. At the other end of the room, stood several Elites. Their leader, who she only knew as 'Shipmaster', floated on a hovering chair.

"Probably thinks it makes him look special…" She thought to herself with a chuckle. After being rescued by the Elites, they had all been taken to one of the huge alien ships, and brought to the room they now all stood in. John had been quiet the entire time, his eyes glued to the storage device. When he had explained that Cortana was inside, she thought he would have rejoiced, at least a little. But he had been as quiet and unreadable as always.

"Uncertain, this storage device has suffered considerable trauma." Spark chirped, his eye flashing as he spoke. "Its matrixes are highly unstable."

"Perhaps one of our technicians…" Hood started to say, before being cut off by the Shipmaster immediately.

"That will not be necessary."

Samus rolled her eyes while nobody was looking. Both great leaders of their respective people, and yet both of them acted like little boys around each other. She was instantly reminded of the Galactic Federation, and its difficulties when it came to alien delegates.

"Guess some things never change." She thought, amused. Her eyes turned to John once again, the man still standing rigid and silent. She supposed she couldn't judge him too harshly, if Adam went missing, or was stolen, she wasn't sure how she'd react. Probably with a lot of violence and anger, she realized. She was pretty deep in thought, so much so that she didn't immediately react when the device lit up, and none other than Cortana appeared before them all. Two things shook her out of her thoughts, one being Spark whooping in success, and the other being John's sudden stride forward.

"Chief!" Cortana shouted, looking in his general direction.

"Cortana…"

"High Charity, the Prophets holy city is on its way to earth. With an army of Flood. I can't tell you everything…The Gravemind. It knows I'm in the sys-ste-em." She said urgently, seeming to freeze at the end. John recoiled, tilting his head.

"It's just a message…" He said slowly, his voice quiet and dead. The Shipmaster shook his head, gesturing with a hand to Spark.

"Let it play."

Spark zapped the device, and Cortana continued with her message.

"But it doesn't know about the portal, where it leads. On the other side, is a solution, a way to stop the Flood, without firing the remaining Halo rings!" She said urgently, as if she only had a limited moment to say what she needed to. She gasped shortly after and fell to her knees, hands clutching her head in pain. Samus saw John physically tense at the sight, as he slowly leaned forward.

"Hurry Chief…the Ark…there isn't much time…" She whispered, clearly in pain, before the image froze once again. Spark zapped it a few times, but Cortana's message remained the same.

"I'm sorry." He chirped, floating away, leaving John to stand in front of her.

"No matter Oracle, we've heard enough." The Shipmaster muttered, his mandibles flexing slightly. He paused, before looking up at the rest of the room. "Our fight is through the portal, with the Brutes and the bastard Truth!"

The Elites in the room all roared their support, fists raised and heads nodding, but the humans didn't look so convinced. Hood in particular seemed doubtful.

"Fine. We'll remain here, hold out as long as we can." He said slowly, eyes on the Shipmaster. The Shipmaster glared at him, leaning forward from his chair.

"Did you not hear? Your world is doomed." He growled, before getting up, towering over everyone else present. "A Flood army, a Gravemind has you in its sights. You barely survived a small contamination."

"And you Shipmaster just glassed half a continent! Maybe the Flood isn't all I should be worried about…"

"One single Flood spore can destroy a species. Were it not for the Arbiters council, I would have glassed the entire planet!" He roared, glaring hard at the human, who in turn was glaring right back.

Samus hated to have the thought, but she agreed with the Elite. Stopping the Flood should take priority, no matter how many worlds were lost in the process. She didn't voice her opinion of course, not wanting to add to the argument. Fortunately, Miranda Keyes stepped in, pulling Hood aside.

"Sir, with respect, Cortana has a solution-"

"Cortana? Did you see her condition? How damaged she is? She could be corrupted for all we know! Her solution could be a Flood trap." Hood said, glare now focused on Keyes.

"We should go through the portal, and find out for sure."

"What we should do commander is understand, clearly, that this is humanities final stand! Here, at Earth." He said, shoulders sagging. The room went quiet, nobody could argue that Humanity was in a pretty bad situation.

"If we go we risk everything, every last man, woman and child. But if we stand out ground, we might just have a chance…" He sighed, looking a lot older. Samus bit her lip, before taking a step forward.

"If I might add something…" She started, looking at him. He gave her a hard stare, before nodding slowly. All eyes fell on her, with the exception of John, who was still as frozen as Cortana.

"I've seen, first hand, what the Flood can do to worlds and its people. If Cortana is wrong about this, if there isn't some miracle on the other side…you've already lost." She said quietly. She hated to say it, especially when she saw his face fall, but it was the truth. If humanity didn't take part, they would all lose, one way or another.

"I'll find Cortana's solution, and I'll bring it back." John said suddenly, standing upright and turning to face Hood and the others. Hood turned to look at him, expression looking defeated.

"Do you trust her that much?" He asked John, causing Samus to raise an eyebrow. Hood was talking about Cortana right?

"Sir, yes sir."

Hood sighed, rubbing his eyes, before looking at everyone else present.

"This is either the best decision you have ever made, or the worst. Heck of it is Chief, I doubt I'll live long enough to find out which…" He said quietly, turning on a heel and walking out, Keyes behind him. Samus could hear them discussing weapons, soldiers, supplies, things needed for the trip. The Shipmaster had also turned his attention to others, several Elites and the Arbiter in discussion, probably about something similar. John walked up beside her, staring at the door the Human leaders has walked out though.

"You ok big guy?" She asked him, tilting her head to look up at him. When they were both in armor, he was a foot or so taller, but without her armor on, she felt even shorter. He really was a tower of a man.

"I'll be fine." He said, monotone. His fists clenched, before he too strode out of the room, being replaced by Johnson at her side.

"Ah don't worry about him princess, the Chief can handle himself." The Sargent said with a smile, and Samus couldn't help but smirk back. Johnson's personality was infectious, and she couldn't help but feel a little better around him. He pulled out a cigar, glancing around the room before quickly lighting it and taking a puff, sighing in satisfaction.

"Come on, we'll need to help move supplies and stuff. After, I'll find a spare room for you. Guessing the portal won't be instant, and I'm sure you could use some downtime." He said after another puff, strolling out of the room. Samus hurried to catch him, not eager to be left on her own again. The two of them walked down the corridor, heading towards the hanger to help out in what ways they could.

* * *

A couple of hours later, Samus found herself in a gym on the UNSC ship Forward Unto Dawn, taking out some pent up aggression on a poor defenseless punching bag. The constant and rhythmic sound of her fists making contact with the bag felt good, as did the slight shock that would go up her arm. She wasn't sure how heavy this bag was, but she had tried a lighter one at first, and had sent the poor thing flying off its hinges. An officer had directed her towards one he had called 'Spartan proof'.

After she had helped Johnson move supplies and such, he had directed her to a small room in the sleeping quarters, and had then left. She had tried to relax, but she found the bed was…too soft. And the room had made her feel slightly claustrophobic. It had also left her to her thoughts, something she didn't really need right now. She thought of before she was put to sleep, or at least what she could remember of it. Which, sadly, wasn't much. Bits and pieces really. She also thought about more recent memory, and the events which had led to this point. She thought about the Flood, and how much they frightened her. She thought about John.

He was a lot like her, both having somewhat of a similar upbringing. Both of them were warriors in a sense, and the both of them had sacrificed a lot to save their respective periods of time. The both of them were armored hulks on the battlefield, though she had yet to see him fully remove his armor. Could he? Was it apart of him? Questions she would have to ask him sometime. This of course led to thinking about battle, which always got her blood pumping.

Finally getting sick of being cooped up, she left the room in search of something to do on the ship. She had bumped into a few soldiers, all of them giving salutes and assuming she was a higher rank. Technically she didn't have a rank, but she wasn't one to turn away free respect. She had bumped into one particular marine who had tried to flirt, which resulted in her challenging the man to an arm wrestle. He had accepted, cockily thinking he would win. The look was quickly wiped of his face when she won in a second, bringing his hand and arm crashing down. Fortunately, an officer had walked in before an argument could start, and after a brief discussion, directed her to the gym. And now here she was, beating on a punching bag.

Samus paused, taking a breath, before doing a swift round house kick, causing the bag to shudder under the force. She resumed her combat stance, taking a moment to catch a breather. She hadn't even heard him walk in the room.

"What did that poor guy do to you?" A deep voice said, carrying across the otherwise silent room. She turned, coming face to face with John, still in his armor. He stood in the doorway, otherwise silent as a statue. How long had he been watching?

"Looked at me funny." She said with a huff, joking around. She couldn't tell if he found it funny or not. He walked into the gym, stopping right in front of her. He towered over her, making her have to look right up.

"Want to try something a little more realistic?" He said suddenly, taking a step back and crouching low, assuming some kind of combat stance. She stared for a few moments, before bursting into laughter, nearly doubling over.

"…Something funny?"

"Oh, you know. Just the fact you're still armored. I mean, you can't really call it fair if only one of us is in their suit." She told him, wiping a tear from her eye. She chuckled a little more, putting her hands on her hips. John was still in his combative stance, silent. She blinked, her smile dying.

"You can't be serious?" She said, giving him a glare now.

"What's wrong? You don't think you can beat me?"

"Not while you're armored!"

"Didn't seem to have any issues back on Halo." He said, his tone hinting at something. She paused, before finally getting it.

"Is that what this is about? The fact I kicked your ass?" She said, grin returning. He stood back up, rigid.

"You had superior weapons and armor, I'd hardly call that fair." He said, slight hint of wounded pride in his voice.

"Oh please, you fight aliens who have better weapons. I beat you because, well, I'm just better." She said, grinning. This was the most emotional she had seen this man, and she wanted to see how far she could push him.

John however, didn't seem to play the game. He continued to stand there, a statue, unreadable. She waited for him to say something, anything, but he didn't. With a sigh, she went to turn and punch the bag again, but found a different fist beat her to it. A large, green fist, that sent the heavy bag flying. She whirled, John now right behind her.

"Well, if you won't fight me with armor, will you fight me without it?" He asked, voice monotone. She blinked, not expecting that at all.

"I didn't even know if it could come of, I was going to ask about it." She said, shrugging. He was silent for a few moments, before he suddenly turned and made his way to the door.

"Wait here."

She stared after him as he left, and a grin grew on her lips. She turned back to the bag, picking it up and placing it on its hanger, before resuming her punches. She hit the bag faster and faster, her arms turning into blurs. Finally, someone who might actually be a challenge.

She stopped after a few minutes, taking a seat on a bench to catch her breath and recharge. She was just starting to wonder where the hell he'd gone when a man walked into the room, and she couldn't help but stare.

Not as high as in his armor, he was still a tower of a person. His hair and face she remembered, cropped short and no remarkable features. His body was well toned, muscled and strong. It was his skin though, that caught her attention the most. It was white, near alabaster. If she didn't know any better, she would have said he really was a statue. How long does he stay in his armor?

Behind John came several other men, marines and navy crew. It seemed they were making bets, as she could see money being handed between them. Johnson walked in a moment later, puffing on a cigar and grinning. She raised an eyebrow questioningly at him, and he just shrugged.

"I wouldn't miss this fight for anything." He said with a chuckle, leaning up against a wall by the door.

John himself had strode to the middle of the room, and once again resumed the combat stance from earlier.

"Better?" He said, eyes boring into her. His face was expressionless, looking exactly how he sounded with the helmet on.

She grinned, getting up and making her way towards him. A marine wolf whistled, but was quickly shushed by another. She recognized him as the guy she beat in the arm wrestle. She grinned at him, before returning her gaze to John. She reached the middle of the room, a few feet away from him. She sunk into her own combat stance, probably as alien as John's looked to her.

"Any rules?" She asked seriously, her state of mind switching, ready for a fight.

"This is just a spar. The fight ends if either of us is knocked unconscious…or if they surrender." He said, lips twisting upright at the last part.

"My god, you're smiling. I didn't think it was possible." She said with a laugh, though her eyes never left his.

"Are you ready?" He said, back to being serious.

"I'm always rea-"

She barely had time to react. He had launched himself forward in one swift motion, fist flying right for her face. Caught off guard, she managed to tilt her head to the side just in time. John immediately went to launch a knee into her stomach in the same motion, but she was ready this time, easily dodging to the side. As she did, she spun, moving to swing a kick into the back of his head. He was too slow to dodge the strike, grunting as the blow landed, but he did grab her ankle, trapping her. She struggled to free her leg, but his grip was made of steel.

He swung her, lifting her over him, and brought her crashing down on his other side. She hit the ground hard, gasping as wind rushed out of her. She saw him prepare a punch out of the corner of her eye, and rolled to the side, delivering a swift jab of her own. He didn't seem phased, moving to punch again. She rolled away, swinging her legs toward his ankles. John began to fall, but twisted before hitting the ground, landing on one knee. Samus used this moment to create distance between them, and stood back up, a lot wearier now.

The fact he was strong she had always known, but even without his suits help his strength was scary. And while she realized she was still a lot faster, his speed was not a joke. He stood there, silently staring. Probably analyzing her the same way she was.

"Realizing it was your armor that beat me after all?" He said suddenly, face still serious.

She blinked, and then fumed. She felt her cheeks redden, but she didn't care. How dare he, she was every bit as mighty as her suit. No more games, she decided, time to show this Spartan exactly who he was dealing with.

She darted towards him, feigning a punch to his face. He fell for it, bringing his arms up in defense. Her real attack was a swift knee to his side, which she delivered with as much force as she could muster. She heard him grunt, loudly, and quickly darted away before he could try another grab. He clutched at air, before getting into a more defensive stance.

"I don't know John, you tell me." She said with a smirk, winking. Cheers filled the gym, and she noted in the back of her head that the tiny crowd had grown, a lot more people in the gym then at the start. She didn't dare take her eyes of John to actually look however.

She rushed forward, lashing out with a series of fast jabs and kicks, constantly moving. Her strategy was to keep moving. She was faster than him, and that would be the key to victory. If he got his hands on her again, it could very well end the fight.

John kept on the defensive, blocking the blows as best he could, but he couldn't block them all. She kept landing small hits in soft areas, and she could see she was winning. She got cocky, taking bigger risks. She didn't care, she was winning.

And that's when John struck. With a hard punch, he connected right into her stomach. Pain exploded within her, and she fell to the floor, winded. She went to get up, but John was on her, trying to get ahold of her, probably for a knock out. She fought his grabs off, rolling and kicking when she could. She was at a disadvantage, but she was succeeding in keeping him off her. She went to get up for a second time, when John collided right into her, pinning her under his weight. She couldn't get him off, struggle as she might. He maneuvered quickly, snaking an arm around her neck, and bringing her up to his chest, before tensing his arm.

"The bastards going to try and knock me out…" She thought, struggling against his grip, but unable to escape. Her vision began to darken, and she felt her body weaken.

"No…No dammit, I will not let him win!" She mentally shouted. She flipped her body over him, while he still held the sleeper hold, and sent her knee flying into the side of his head. John must not have counted on her being this flexible, because he had no defense ready. She felt her knee collide with the side of his head, and heard him yell in pain. His grip loosened, and she used this opportunity to get away, shoving the arm away and rolling to the side, getting back up.

Her blow had done more damage than she thought. John slowly got back up, blinking more than a few times. Samus guessed he must have seen stars, at least temporarily. He got to his feet, his stare returning to the hard, analytical one he had worn throughout their fight. She coughed, her throat sore from his arm, but she smirked anyway.

"You can always give up." She said, the sounds of the crowd faint in her ears. He didn't answer, unmoving like stone. She was thinking of how to try and get the best of him when he suddenly charged forward, moving to deliver his own kick toward her head. She ducked the attack, moving to sweep his over leg out from under him. He jumped to the side, moving to strike again while she was on the ground. Samus flipped over him, and moved to deliver a round house kick. John whirled, blocking her foot with his arm.

"What's going on here?"

Both of them froze, and turned to face the doorway. Miranda Keyes stood before then, looking far from impressed. She folded her arms, throwing a glare at the both of them.

"Ma'am, we were sparring." John said, immediately standing to attention, causing Samus to almost lose her balance. She regained her footing, rolling her eyes at the soldiers pose.

"Armor up, Spartan. We will be coming out of Slipspace soon, and we need to be ready for what's on the other side." She said, before whirling to face the crowd behind her "And that goes for the rest of you as well! Move it soldiers!"

John immediately marched out of the room, not looking back. As the marines and navy crew all scrambled to do the captains bidding, she finally turned to Samus, who had not moved.

"So, did you cause that, or was it him?"

"Would you believe me if I said he started it?" Samus chuckled, before sighing and placing her hands on her hips. "Look, I didn't mean to-"

"Save it, it's alright. I know you're no soldier, I shouldn't expect you to have the same rules." Keyes said, unblinking. The words stung her a bit, as if it was more of an insult. Keyes continued before she could reply.

"Report to the Hanger, and make sure you're armored. Who knows what we're about to walk into." She said, offering a slight smile before turning on her heel and walking back out, leaving Samus alone. Samus frowned, standing motionless for a moment, before slowly walking out, activating her armor as she left. Did she imagine that hostility? Samus couldn't decide if she had or not, and continued thinking about it until she reached the hanger, oblivious to the navy personal who moved out of her way as she approached. A shout caught her attention.

"This way princess." Johnson called out, standing by a nearby Pelican. Samus made her way over, jumping inside. John had beat her there, already seated in his massive green armor. She sat down in the seat beside him, copying the marines around her and pulling the safety bar down onto her lap.

"By the way, nice fighting you two. I didn't know who to bet for." Johnson chuckled, before heading for the cockpit, exchanging words with the pilot. She looked at John, who was busy checking over his weapons. She was about to ask how sore he was when the Pelican shuddered, and then dropped.

From there, she didn't have much time to think. The Pelican shook violently, the sounds of muted explosions coming from outside. She leaned forward, to look out the cockpit window, and saw Covenant ships firing upon one another. The Elites and the Brutes, she figured. She saw the Forward unto Dawn, a tiny speck in comparison to the huge alien ships all around it. And she saw something else. A huge installation below them. It had an atmosphere, much like a Halo, but that's where its similarities ended. As she looked at it, and it's strange, star like shape, a name floated into her mind. A name that Cortana had spoken in her recorded message. A name which for reasons she couldn't quite grasp, made her feel uneasy, if not worried.

The Ark.


	8. Chapter 7

**Hey all! Woo, was this chapter an odd one to write. I tried to stick to my usual word limit, without omitting any of the major parts of this mission. Sad to say, I failed spectacularly. Still, it was a blast to write, and I hope you all enjoy the read!**

**Please leave a comment to let me know if you enjoyed it, or to point out any mistakes I might have made, and be sure to favorite and follow if you do like it!**

**(Side note: I apologize for how 'late' this chapter is. You can blame the announcement of Metroid Prime: Federation Forces. Kind of...killed my desire to write.)**

**As usual, I do not own Halo or Metroid in any way. Nothings changed.**

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Chapter Seven

The Master Chief looked out the back of the Pelican, at the alien vista below them. Despite this place being like none he had ever seen, it reminded him a lot of deserts back home. An endless sea of sand passed under them, the only distinct feature in the landscape being a series of craggy hills, which they approached now. He shifted his head slightly, looking over at the Arbiter, who sat across from him. The alien gazed out at the desert as well, his cat like eyes unreadable. In his lap sat a beam rifle, its purple casing standing out amongst the greens and blacks of the marines all around them.

Samus Aran sat beside him, the other person who didn't fit in, the oranges and yellows of her armor unmistakable. Her visor was unlit, and he could see her looking down at her arm cannon, her free hand fiddling with some kind of control panel on the cannons side. John turned back to the desert, the sun reflecting off his visor. The sea of sand made way for barren rocks, and small paths between them. They had arrived at the small mountain range seen earlier.

"Alright men, orders from the top. You're to find and capture Covenant Intel, anything that might tell us where the Prophet of Truth is hiding his wrinkly ass. The information might also be accessible through Forerunner tech, though that's less likely." Johnson's voice called out over the radio. "Now I don't know what you might find out there, but finding his location is most important. Now, go go go!"

The Pelican touched down, the back ramp opening with a hiss. John grabbed a Sniper Rifle, tucked away above the seats, and stepped out. He gave their landing spot a quick once over, checking for any hiding spots the Covenant could use to their advantage. The marines followed behind him, all of them moving ahead, rifles at the ready. Samus stepped out, followed by the Arbiter. The both of them gave their landing zone a quick look around, before moving to stand by John. Once everyone was off, the Pelican slowly rose, the back compartment sealing up once again, before soaring away, fading into the sky.

John moved forward, toward a small path directly ahead of them, and gave a silent hand signal for everyone to fall in behind him. The group moved quietly, silently. A pin could have been heard if one was dropped. John didn't want any potential enemies to get the drop on them. They didn't have to wait long.

He rounded a corner, and came face to face with a grunt. He raised his rifle, almost pulling the trigger, before realizing the little alien's eyes were closed. It murmured something in its native tongue, before shuffling slightly. It was asleep, he realized. He looked up from the Grunt, spotting more of them nearby, all of them asleep. Unaware.

He turned back to the others, daring to use his radio. If he was with Spartans, it wouldn't have been necessary, but with Samus and the Arbiter especially, he thought hand signals might go amiss.

"Squad of Grunts, resting. Go for silent take downs." He said, monotone, before turning towards the closest Grunt, and as fast as lightning, snapped the little guy's neck. It was over in a flash.

The others moved in, getting ready to make their own kills. The marines used a mix of neck breaking, though much slower, and knives. They weren't amazing at it, but they got the job done. The Arbiter flicked his wrist, a small, energy sword like weapon flaring to life from his wrist. He strolled up to the grunt closest to him, and stabbed his blade into the top of its skull, killing it instantly. Samus had moved toward the farthest pair. With a quick, acrobatic maneuver, she flipped, bringing her heel down on the head of one, and the tip of her cannon to the other. Bones snapped, and both died without a sound. She landed, and held her position.

"Nice work." He said as they caught up to her, before making his way further along the path, which now was moving uphill.

"Thanks" she chuckled, falling in behind him. They made their way to the top of the path, and looked down at the scene below them. The path was on a natural ledge, which looked down upon a small Covenant outpost. Several Brutes moved about, as well as a Jackal pair in a watch tower. A handful of Grunts were also present, moving boxes and taking orders from their Brute commanders.

"We should remove the Brutes before a fight starts…" The Arbiter commented, gripping his Beam Rifle calmly.

"Agreed. I'll point out individual targets for those with Sniper capabilities. The rest, get ready further down. We'll catch them by surprise." John ordered, before assigning the Arbiter, Samus and two marines a Brute each. The other marines traveled further down the path, toward the outpost, and awaited the signal to fire. John retrieved the Sniper from his back, resting it on the rock in front of him. He heard the distinct sound of Samus's cannon changing firing modes, and looked over at the weapon. It had elongated, its general roundish shape more streamlined and sharp. The highlights of the weapon were an angry red. She aimed and waited for his order. He checked the others were ready, before giving the order.

"Now."

A mix of loud gunfire, and distinct plasma fire rang out, shattering the dull quiet from moments ago. Every Brute dropped before anyone could react, all of them dead. The marines poured into the compound, opening fire on the very confused Grunts, who were no match. The Jackals on the other hand, were, and immediately fired as the shooting began, taking out a couple of the marines from the safety of their hovering platform. That is, until a rocket flew into the platform, blowing both it and the Jackals up in a bright flash. Samus chuckled, her cannon still smoking from her missile fire. She jumped down, joining the marines in killing the Grunts. The whole conflict lasted less than a minute.

John and the rest of the sniper team also hurried down, regrouping with the rest of them. The sounds of angry Brute shouts could be heard coming from farther ahead, from the entrance to a short cave to be exact.

"Does this mean we can drop the quiet approach?" Samus asked, staring at the cave, the sounds echoing out.

"Yes. Permission to go loud, all of you. Stealth is no longer an option." John said, swapping his Sniper for a more versatile Battle Rifle. The Arbiter retrieved a Carbine from a dead Brute, and after a quick check up, they moved through the cave. It wasn't a long trip, before they arrived at the source of the noise. Another encampment, similar to the one before. A much larger number of Brutes hurried about, setting up gun turrets, as well as readying hand held weapons. All of which were pointed at the cave.

"Well, since they're expecting us…" Samus said slyly, raising her cannon. Before John could stop her, she unleashed a flurry of missiles down onto the preparing Brutes. Many of the Brutes saw the attack coming, and quickly activated bubble shields to hide underneath. Those farthest away, or those carrying turrets were not fast enough, and got caught in the barrage, nothing but black stains remaining of them.

"You know, we could have planned that better." John muttered, annoyed. She simply shrugged and charged onward, moving into the clearing. The Brutes saw her, and all roared, storming out from the safety of their shields. John saw an opportunity, and ordered everyone to fire. The Brutes had only seen Samus, and were not smart enough to expect more of them. The combined gunfire caught many more of them out, some dropping as they ran, others as they turned to try and get back to their shields. A few kept charging, all of them dying by Samus's hands. One in particular gasped and dropped, streams of purple electricity causing him to convulse, before going still. She planted a foot on the cooked body, turning to look back at John. He couldn't see her face, but from her body language, she looked smug.

"Who needs plans?" She said, sounding pleased with herself. John bit back a reply, not wanting to get into a debate. Besides, she was right, technically. She did manage well on her own. But still…

The group moved further along their path, mopping up another group of grunts along the way. John rounded another bend, wondering when they might actually get somewhere, when he spotted a door. A metal door. In the middle of the rock face before him. He moved up to it, but it didn't open automatically. There must be come kind of way to open it…he thought to himself.

He turned to Samus, who was also just staring at the door. "Think you can get it open?"

"I'll give it a shot…" She said slowly, her visor changing from its usual glowing green to a white, the color it turned into when she was scanning. She didn't scan long, before the door slid open silently, the hallway beyond smooth metal with blue lights. They moved down the hallway, no one immune to curiosity as they looked at the holograms inside. John could see Samus scanning them as they walked, he'd have to ask what information they had when they had the time.

They soon came to another door, Samus opening it once again. They emerged into a small circular area, surrounded by cliff face except for one side, which moved out into the sandy desert. Down in the clearing was a group of Brutes, all sitting and eating. Nearby was several vehicles John had never seen before. They were gray, and from the look of it, made by Brutes. It had a similar face as a Chopper, all spikes. A seat was at the back, as well as a gunner spot, and a seat on each side of the vehicle. John signaled for the marines to get ready, concentrated fire would take the small group out before they could react.

"Alright, on my mark, get ready to-"

He didn't get to finish, as several missiles streaked passed him. The Brutes were instantly taken out in the ensuing explosion, but so were two of the Vehicles, leaving only one untouched. John whirled, visor staring blankly at Samus, who didn't look so smug anymore.

"…I'll take it easy on the explosions from now on." She said quietly, her cannon slowly lowering.

John groaned, before looking back at the devastation. How would they all cross the desert now?

"It's alright Chief, we'll radio the Pelican to come pick us up, and you three can continue." One of the Marines said, as if sensing his frustration. He simply nodded, and moved toward the vehicle, the Arbiter behind him. Samus followed them, after a moment's hesitation.

"I can drive a Brute Prowler." The Arbiter said, hopping behind the 'wheel'. At least John knew what it was called now. He jumped into the Prowlers turret seat, leaving Samus to pick a side seat. John's radio crackled to life, the sound of a panicked marine coming from the other end.

"Does anybody read? We're in some serious trouble, and about to lose tanks over. Does anybody copy?"

"This is Spartan one-one-seven. I read you, give me your co-ordinates marine." John replied immediately. The marine sounded very grateful, and eagerly gave the tank groups location. John compared it to their current location. It wasn't too far, just a bit into the desert.

"Did you both hear that?" John asked. The Arbiter nodded, as did Samus.

"Let us make haste, those warriors will not last long from…" the Arbiter said, bringing the Prowler to life, the vehicle letting out a growl before gliding along the sand, heading out into the open.

* * *

The ride was peaceful, in a way. John looked out into the desert, and the sky above. If John was to discover they weren't on Earth, the sky would have been the giveaway. Above him shone stars, glittering in an otherwise blue sky. Many of them clustered into groups of stars. Galaxies. And the brightest, at least from where he was now, was a large cluster, shaped in a sort of spiral pattern. The Milky Way galaxy. His galaxy. John let that fact sink in before looking discreetly at the other two. The Arbiter seemed to be concentrating on driving, his mandibles clicking occasionally, and his cat like eyes analyzing the gauges and controls. Samus was staring out into the desert, her face hidden. But from the way her head moved slightly every few moments, he guessed she must have been talking to Adam.

"You mean, like how we used to talk?" Cortana whispered in his ear.

He clenched his fist unconsciously. It took all his effort to not let out a noise.

"How Cortana and I talk, yes. You're not her. You're not real."

"Uh huh. Whatever you say, John. I think you're just in denial." She laughed, sounding more…sinister than John remembered her voice sounding.

"You. Are. Not. Real."

"Oh? Than what am I Chief? What am I to you?"

The question caught him off guard. He sighed, momentarily forgetting that she wasn't actually there with him.

"Cortana…"

"Hey, John?"

"What?" He said loudly, hostility dripping from his tone. He was fed up with this…shadow. Cortana was out there, and he would rescue her, no matter the cost. It took him a moment, however, to realize that it wasn't her that had spoken.

Samus looked up at him, mouth slightly open. She must have removed her helmet at some point during his internal dilemma. Her blue eyes were flung open, staring into his visor. He was glad his face was hidden. Snapping like that was not right, and he should have had better control of himself. He thought he heard Cortana's faint laughter, but he mentally shook it off.

"Sorry…I have a lot on my mind at the moment." He said, softer. She seemed to relax slightly.

"Listen, I just wanted to say that I was sorry. About not listening to your orders. I'm so used to working alone…it's hard to readjust to being part of a team again." She said, her voice just above the sound of the wind blowing past them. "I can't promise I'll listen all the time, but for the record, I didn't mean for those marines to die, or to strand them."

John sighed. "Samus, you're a great fighter. And when it's just us, I don't expect you to blindly listen to me. I know what it's like to depend on yourself, and only yourself. But when it comes to other soldiers…People, who can't keep up with us, I try and get them all back safely. I want everyone to come home at the end of the day, no one left behind, even if it means it takes longer."

She nodded slowly, seemingly letting his words sink in. He couldn't blame her too much, like she said, she'd been fighting all on her own for a long time. And he knew what that could do to a person. Still, he'd have to keep an eye on her, just to make sure.

The sound of a distant explosion caused them both to look up ahead. A purple shape could be seen, growing larger by the second. The sounds of marines yelling and gunfire started playing through all their radios, and they could see both the flashes of tanks firing, and bright green explosions. Judging by the now large purple shape, and the green plasma fire, John had to assume it was a-.

"Scarab." Samus said, taking the word right out of his mouth. She placed her helmet back on, the dull visor lighting up, flashing bright green. John fiddled with his helmets radio, making sure that anyone across all coms in the vicinity could hear him.

"This is Spartan one one seven. Don't worry, reinforcements have arrived."

* * *

The Prowler came speeding into a warzone. The area they had entered was littered with ruined vehicles, of both Human and Covenant design. The battlefield slopped downhill, leading to a small open area, before falling off a sharp edge. The Scarab stood in this area, many wraith tanks in front of it. To the left of the Scarab was a large, Forerunner structure, which was swarmed by Covenant infantry. On the upper slopes, the UNCS forces held out, ducking behind natural cover to avoid the Scarabs fire. The Tanks took potshots at the wraiths ahead, ducking away before the plasma mortars could land.

"Arbiter, bring us to a tank. We need to push forward. Samus, you're with me." John instructed, getting a nod from the both of them. They drove towards the nearest Tank, several marines crowded around it. Eyes widened and grins shone when they pulled up.

"Chief? Of thank god, we've been going through hell."

"What's the situation?" John asked, all business.

The marine explained that they had been tasked with securing the Forerunner building, under orders from Miranda Keyes herself. They had shown up, the Covenant had scrambled their Wraiths, and a firefight ensued. The Scarab had only just shown up before they had apparently, and was currently turning the tide. The tanks could handle the Wraiths, mortar fire too slow to hit a constantly moving target, but the Scarab was a different beast. Another tank was destroyed as they spoke, green plasma melting the top half, boiling anyone inside.

"Alright marines, I'm going to need this tank." John said, already climbing up to the driver's seat. None of them objected, all of them hurrying away towards relative safety. John gave Samus a wave, smacking the top of the canopy, near its gunner seat.

"If I make a beeline for the Scarab, can you deal with any Wraiths that get too close?"

"Sure…going to fill me in on the plan?" She asked, crouching down near the front of the tank.

"If I can get under the Scarab that puts us at an advantage. Neither the Scarabs nor the Wraiths guns will be able to hit us, and we can take it out from the underside. But I need to concentrate on getting there fast, which is where you come in. Destroy any of those Wraiths that get too close." He informed her, revving the tank to life, the vehicle letting out a roar like sound

"Consider it done." She said with a grin, her cannon flashing, highlights changing to a yellow, her standard weapon if he remembered.

He wasted no more time, moving out of cover and driving straight down the slope, gunning it toward the Scarab. All the nearby Wraiths instantly turned to their direction, mortar shells firing. All but the closest tanks couldn't come close to hitting them, as John pushed the tank to its maximum speed. But the ones nearby were getting uncomfortable close with their shots, and getting closer all the time. Then, one exploded, vanishing in a bright yellow explosion. Followed by another, and another. Samus was keeping her word, firing Super Missile after Super Missile at the closest alien tanks, purple armor no match for her weapons destructive power.

John noticed the Scarab fixate on them. The huge vehicle had two weapons, its primary one, which fired a large stream of green plasma. But it also had a secondary one, which fired more precise shots of energy, and it was this that he was worried about. John took a risk, he stopped the tank for a moment, lining up his main gun.

He fired, the shell sailing right for the second gun, on top of the Scarab. Just as its 'eye' started to glow, the shot hit, shattering the whole thing. It almost sounded like the Scarab let out a roar of pain, but John shrugged the thought aside. A warning beep caught his attention. A Wraith had gotten a shot off before Samus destroyed it, and the mortar was coming right for them. The tank wouldn't be able to move in time. John waited for the impact…

And was surprised to see it explode midair, before it reached them. A red streak of plasma had intercepted the shot, blowing it up prematurely. Samus slammed the hull, getting his attention.

"What the hell are you doing? Drive!" She shouted, her cannon glowing hot red. Her Plasma Beam.

He gunned the tanks engine, moving to avoid the Scarabs Plasma fire. He couldn't believe he had been so careless. He was lucky Samus had managed to blow up the mortar. Lucky…

They made it under the Scarab, much to its distaste. It moved constantly, trying to get away from them, but to no avail, the human tank much faster. Both John and Samus fired at one of its back legs, missiles and tank shots destroying armor and ripping into the inner workings. Before long the Scarab gave out, slowly sinking to the ground. John moved the tank out from underneath, and repositioned behind the scarab, moving the tanks gun to fire on the armor plate covering the Behemoth vehicles 'engine'. Brutes up above howled at them, some firing their small arms, others throwing a variety of things at them, including a single Grunt. The little guy screamed the whole way down, before landing with a crunch near the tank. Samus fired several missile toward the upper deck, scattering the Covenant above. John meanwhile, fired again and again at the armor covering the Scarabs rear. With one final shot, the armor fell, no longer able to withstand their attacks. John took aim, while Samus charged her cannon, the tip glowing a bright gold, deadly energy thrashing around it. She gave him a nod, and together, they fired, both shots hitting the Scarabs core at the same time, reducing it to ash.

The Scarab started giving out a warning sound, small purple fires cropping up all over its structure. Brutes could be seen abandoning the vehicle, jumping out and running for their lives. John wasted no time, turning the tank around the gunning it away. He knew how bad the explosion would be, and he didn't intend to get caught in it. Samus took potshots at the fleeing Brutes as they retreated, killing as many as she could. As soon as they reached what John estimated was a safe distance, the Scarab exploded, his vision flashing a violent white, before gradually fading, his ears ringing from the sound of the explosion. Samus had managed to stay on the tank, though she was on her back now, the shockwave having knocked her down.

Johns senses slowly returned, the ringing in his ears fading gradually. He lifted the hatch above the tanks cockpit, and pulled himself out, slightly off balance as he hit the ground. He looked up, his vision clearing, to find the rest of the tanks had taken advantage of their bold attack, catching the remaining Wraiths off guard and destroying them before they could return fire. He offered Samus a hand, which she shrugged off. She got to her feet and looked back at their handy work. The Scarab was nothing more than rubble, pieces of it scattered across the landscape. The Brutes who had survived the explosion now retreated to the huge Forerunner building close by, those strong enough remaining outside. Their roars could be heard in the distance. The injured had already retreated inside. John figured after the fight they had just had, a few Brutes should pose no issues.

The sound of a tank moving up beside him caught his attention. It came to a stop next to the duo, the hatch popping open to reveal the marine from earlier. The Arbiter was sitting on the side, and he hopped off when the vehicle stopped moving.

"Nice work Spartan. You saved the lives of your warriors."

"Yeah thanks Chief, we were in a real pickle before you showed up." The marine added, looking over at the destroyed Scarab and letting out a whistle. "I don't suppose the three of you will be staying and helping us out, will you?"

"Our objective at the moment is to ensure your safety. We will move ahead, and clear a path. You and your men will follow behind and pick off any stragglers." John ordered the marine, who simply saluted before waving the rest of the soldiers over, shouting orders.

"Samus, do you think you can clear the entrance?"

"Thought you'd never ask." She chuckled, before walking ahead. John and the Arbiter fell in behind.

* * *

The walk to the building was quiet. Its main entrance was at the top of a series of ramps, Brutes hiding along the way. Samus kept her word, blasting any that showed themselves. John didn't even have to fire his weapon. They reached the door leading inside with no trouble, though it didn't open automatically.

"Brutes must have deactivated the door from the inside…" John mused out loud.

"No worries." Samus replied, turning her head toward the door. A moment later, it opened, her scan visor having little trouble accessing its systems.

The trio moved inside, the resulting hallways empty, lifeless. Signs that the Covenant had been there were obvious, but the aliens themselves were not. Must have retreated further, John thought.

They finally came to another door. The moment the door opened, voices could be heard. They hid, pushing against the walls next to the door, before Samus took a peek.

"What are we up against?" John asked her. At first, she didn't answer, and it took him a moment to realize she was chuckling quietly.

"Look for yourself."

John peeked his head, and blinked.

Inside were a couple of Grunts, fast asleep. They muttered, their high pitch voices carrying as they dreamed. Though, they weren't the source of the noise they heard at first. That would have been the one Brute at the other end, relieving himself. It sighed in satisfaction as it peed, not seeming to care what it was peeing on.

"Hey Arby, kill the Grunts, I've got the big guy." Samus chuckled, an evil grin plastered on her face. The Arbiter grunted, obviously disliking his new nickname, but moved forward into the room, wrist blade slashing silently. Samus meanwhile had stalked up behind the Brute.

"You know, you've been doing that for ages. Just how big a bladder do you have?" She asked.

The Brute yelped, half turning to face her. It…didn't stop peeing.

"Oh here, let me get that for you." She said, before firing a shot from her ice beam at the Brutes crouch. The shot froze the pee in place, as well as the Brutes privates. It yelled, falling on its back as its hands cupped its crouch, as if protecting it. Samus burst out laughing, nearly doubling over. John rounded the corner, firing one shot into the Brutes head, ending it. Samus stopped laughing, though her grin was still stuck to her face.

"That wasn't funny."

"Oh come on, it was so funny." She retorted, looking back at the body before laughing again.

"I do not see the humor here." The Arbiter agreed, his head slightly tilted.

Samus looked between the two, before scowling. "Party poopers."

She turned and made for the door leading on, not looking back. John sighed, before following suit. They came to another, much larger room, which had recently been occupied. Pieces of equipment lay scattered, among other, alien objects.

"Guess they ran." Samus said.

"Wouldn't be because of the howls from your friend." John replied, causing Samus to chuckle.

"Oh look, the great chief has a sense of humor after all."

John ignored her, looking for signs as too where the enemy might have gone. An open doorway, leading to a descending ramp way was his best guess. The trio moved down, further into the building. And still, they encountered no one. John was feeling on edge now, they should have encountered some form of hostility by now. They moved through various rooms and hallways, all eerily silent. They eventually came to an area outside. The 'room' was a platform suspended in the air, which two curving pathways leading to its edge. Across from them was a huge waterfall, which stretched as far as the horizon, and fell into nothingness. John didn't even bother trying to figure out how it was possible.

"Hold up guys." Samus said suddenly, coming to a stop in front of a terminal near the edge of the platform.

"Have something."

"I might, just keep your guard up while I…" Samus said quietly, trailing off as she set to work scanning the terminal.

Suddenly a huge hologram appeared in midair, suspended off the edge. It was the same shape as the installation he had seen from space.

"What is that?"

"It's called the Ark, and it's where we are." Samus replied, her voice distant as she continued processing information.

"This is the Ark?"

"Yeah, I'd always assumed it was some big shot Forerunner installation, but I had no idea it would be…this big."

A pair of Phantoms flew past in the distance, causing the Arbiter to let out a low growl. John thought he heard other growls, coming from the way they had come. John felt the hairs on his neck stick up.

"Can you tell me where we are, exactly?" John asked, growing impatient and nervous.

"Here." Samus said, a little red dot popping up along one of the Arks 'arms'. "As for Truth, I'm having a hard time finding the information. It's almost like he tried to delete it…"

A loud roar echoed throughout the Platform, and John whirled to find a Chieftain behind them, several Brutes accompanying it. The Chieftain swung its hammer, the loud boom from the impact shattering the metal floor and creating a huge echo. The Chieftain puffed out its chest, and let out a cocky sounding growl.

"Surrender the Hunter and the Heretic to us Demon, and I will gift you with a quick end." It grunted, eyes narrowing as it watched Samus continue to hack the terminal.

"Not going to happen." John remarked quietly, before firing with his rifle. The Brutes scattered, all moving in different directions. The Chieftain charged John head on.

"Hold them off, I've almost got it!" Samus shouted, quickly firing at a Brute that came too close, though missing. The Arbiter intervened, swiftly leaping and impaling the Brute on his sword. The Arbiter than fluidly changed to a Carbine, standing beside Samus defensively.

John ducked a swing from the Chieftain, before resuming fire. His bullets pinged of the aliens shield harmlessly, and didn't faze it. It continued its attack on John, swinging wildly. John continued to duck and dodge, not able to do much else with the weapons he had. The Brute suddenly changed tactics, shoulder charging the Spartan into a nearby wall. The impact knocked the wind out of him, the crash making his head spin. The Brute leered, using its hammers handle to crush Johns throat, pinning him against the wall. John was just managing to keep it an inch away, pushing with all his might. But the alien was far heavier, and was using its weight to its advantage. It let out a laugh, sounding like a villain in victory.

"Got it!"

The Brute suddenly seized up, collapsing on the floor in a fit of spasms. Samus's arm cannon crackled with purple lightning, her wave beam. She quickly fired at the remaining Brutes, all of them meeting a similar fate. John quickly grabbed the hammer from the downed Chieftain, using a quick swing to finish it off. He glanced around, analyzing all the bodies with purple lightning and puncture holes from Carbine rounds.

"Nice work. Now, where is he?" John grunted, as if the fight from just now had not happened. Samus went silent for a moment, looking through the data she had downloaded.

"Here, at the Arks core." She said, the hologram in the room changing. A new red dot appeared almost in the middle of the installation. They would need to fly there, that was for sure.

"He's put up a barrier around the core, probably to keep us out. Though why he would chose the core of all place to hide I have-"She trailed off, her helmet vanishing. She looked up at John, eyes wide. "Uh oh."

"What is it?" He asked her quickly, but before either could continue, a low hum sounded throughout the area, and a Covenant Dropship appeared above them.

"Phantom!" The Arbiter shouted, immediately bursting into a run to find cover, firing his carbine as he ran. The others followed, Samus firing her missiles. The Phantom weaved, the missiles passing by harmlessly, before returning fire. Both Johns and Samus shields flared in protest, bright gold and red reflecting off the walls and floor. They made it to cover, on the other side of the platform. John glanced over the short wall they hid behind, seeing the Arbiter taking pot shots at a side gunner, before crouching back down.

"Are you alright?" he asked Samus. The hunter still hadn't activated her helm, and from her face, she looked pissed.

"Fine. Though I hate being caught off guard." She growled. She leaned over the wall to fire, but another gunner spotted her, spraying plasma in her direction. Her shielding lit up again, and she had to duck back down. She swore, looking down at her armor. John looked too, noticing her shields flickered weakly.

"I can't take much more, my shields don't recharge as fast as yours." She said, nearly spitting out the last part.

John nodded, looking around for something, anything, which could help them. His eyes fell on the Hammer, and an idea formed in his head. A crazy idea, but it was the only one he could think off.

"Samus, when I give the order, could you fire a Super Missile at the front of the Phantom?"

"I already told you! My shields are too fu-"

"Trust me."

She shut up, and gave him a hard look. After a couple of seconds, her features softened, and she gave a slight nod.

"Alright…"

John didn't wait any longer. As fast as he could, he sprung up with the hammer, and making a quick calculation in his head, threw it head first, like a spear. The gunner fired on him the moment he popped up, his shields down by the time he ducked back. He peeked over the wall to see if he had succeeded. At first, the Grunt on the turret didn't realize anything was off, until it saw the hammer speeding right for it. Its squeal could be heard from their cover, and the sound of the hammer making impact was just as loud.

"Now!"

Samus didn't hesitate, she popped out of cover, and in a single movement, charged her cannon and fired. The large missile streaked right for the Phantoms front gun, the pilot not moving in time. The missile made impact, the sounds of shredding metal reverberating throughout the area. The front gun fell, most of it in pieces, the debris falling past the platform to the black below them. The missile had also severely damaged the armor on the front of the Phantom, its shell buckled and broken. Still, it remained in the air, and John saw another Grunt moving to main the turret. Samus dived back behind the wall before she could be shot at again.

"This is Spartan one one seven. Can anybody copy? We need close fire on an enemy dropship. I repeat, does anyone copy?" John shouted into the radio, ducking slightly as he felt the wall behind them heat up. For a moment, the radio was silent. But then, someone replied. And John had never been happier to hear this particular voice.

"I thought you'd never ask." Johnsons voice crackled, a light laugh accompanying it. A Pelican rounded a corner, suddenly trapping the damaged Phantom. Before it could turn to defend itself, the Pelicans machine guns tore into it, armor piercing rounds shredding through it like paper. It was over in a flash, as the Phantom exploded, pieces of it falling silently past the platform.

The Pelican moved lower, turning and opening its rear hatch. A very happy Johnson stood inside, cackling.

"Now wasn't that just beautiful?" he laughed, before trying to look serious. "Now, did you find out the Prophets location?"

"Yeah, we did." Samus remarked, stepping into the Pelican and collapsing into a seat. "I'll upload it to Keyes. But there's an issue. The bastards put up a defensive barrier around his hidey hole."

"Anything in the data you found that could help us remove the barrier?" John asked, sitting himself down in the next seat.

"Yeah, actually. Three support pillars that power the shield are scattered around the base of the core. We'd have to take out all three to bring the shield down." She said tiredly. John suddenly realized how tired he felt as well.

"Well, I'll call it into the boss lady, see what she wants to do." Johnson said gruffly, moving to the front of the Pelican. John felt the transport begin to lift off, and as the rear hatched closed, so too did John's eyes begin to close.

Just before he slipped into unconsciousness, his eyes flicked to Samus beside him, who looked like she was fighting sleep herself. She looked over at him and smiled tiredly, her blue eyes no less bright.

"Eyes like Cortana's…" John suddenly realized, before his body gave up and he passed out.


	9. Chapter 8

**Hey all! Woo, Chap 8! Finally getting to the end, and the best parts of the Halo 3 story in my opinion. I had a blast writing this chapter, and tried to condense it as much as possible. Sadly, I failed.**

**Side note: A couple of things metroid wise might not match up to the actual stories or character within the metroid universe. I know, trust me. Things have to change in order for both sides to make sense. So shhh.**

**In any event, I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Eight

"So we hit these three generators, and the barrier will fall?" Keyes asked over the radio, still inside the now battered forward unto dawn. The fighting in space had settled, the Elites proving to be the better tacticians over the impulsive Brutes, but the Dawn had still taken damage. At least, that's how Samus had seen it when they had returned to plan their next move. She had told Keyes about the information she had found on the terminal, as well as additional information she didn't get the chance to say earlier. The particular building that Truth had chosen to hide in was none other than the Arks control room, and from there, he could activate the entire Halo Array. This information hadn't been taken well, and so the plan had been made quickly. After which, they had gathered a group of Pelicans, and marines to go with them. The Arbiter had done the same, gathering Elite soldiers into green Phantoms.

"That's right. Though, he may have back up power for the shield. We will have to be quick." She replied, shifting in her seat. The small fleet of transport ships had flown from the Dawn towards the core. The barrier was clearly visible, a huge dome of energy around a large building, the control room.

"Good enough. John and Samus, take your soldiers to the first pillar, and get it deactivated. Johnson, you head for the third, and the Arbiter can punch right through the middle with the Elites." Keyes said before signing off.

Samus saw the Phantoms and several Pelicans veer off in different directions, suddenly leaving their large attack force more vulnerable. The sky suddenly lit up, as Covenant AA opened fire on their transports.

"Charlie Foxtrot! Tower one approach has active triple AA" She heard the pilot shout, feeling the Pelican being swerving to avoid the plasma fire. John suddenly got up, grabbing a large weapon from the racks above the seats. Samus didn't know what it was, but she didn't really care, there was more important things to deal with.

The sky behind them suddenly lit up as the Pelican behind them took a hit, lurching forward and crashing into their rear. It lost altitude, falling to the ground below.

"Pelican down! Pelican Down!" The pilot shouted, as a commanding officer quickly jumped to his feet, the marines following suite.

"We're coming in hot, get ready marines!" He ordered. Samus shot out of her chair, and as the Pelican neared the ground, jumped out the back.

She landed with a thud, quickly rising. Two Brutes stood waiting, weapons pointed at her. She quickly shot the first one, freezing it solid. Before the second one could react, John fell on top of it, the Brute dying from the weight of his armor. The Pelican touched down for five seconds, the soldiers piling out, before lifting off swiftly and retreating, green bolts of plasma sailing after it. They had landed in a small, sheltered area, larges rocks forming natural cover. Samus moved up, quickly taking out a group of Grunts.

The group pressed forward until they encountered a stretch of open terrain, a beach with a small creek separating them from the Covenant. The aliens had set up two large turrets to protect the AA tank, and they opened fire the moment they saw her. She quickly ducked back, cursing. She hated being in a firefight where she couldn't move. She looked over at John, who was peeking over his cover.

"I'll take one, you destroy the other." He said, not looking at her.

"Oh what? You going to throw that brick of a weapon at it?" She snickered, eyeing the hefty object he was carrying. It was that drab green humans seemed to favor in this age, and large, very large. She doubted any regular soldier could carry one.

John didn't reply, just hefting it over his shoulder. She rolled her eyes, noting once again that he didn't have a funny bone, and took another peek at her turret. It was still firing, just shooting at the rock she hid behind. She was trying to figure out exactly how she would be able to make a clear shot without being blown to bits when the other turret exploded. A large, red laser had blasted through its middle, killing the Grunt inside and making it inoperable. Samus looked back at John, the large weapon he held smoking from the front.

"Something like that." He said, voice deadpan. Samus blinked, before cracking a smirk. Her turret turned after seeing its counterpart's destruction, and started firing at John now. Samus quickly jumped out of cover and fired a charged Plasma shot, super heating the metal of the turret. It began to melt, the Grunt inside dying instantly from the heat. The two of them ran out into the open, darting through the creek to the other side. Grunts dropped their weapons and ran, and the Brutes gathered around the AA tank in a last ditch effort to protect it. A Chieftain stood among them, carrying a large turret by hand. John's oversized laser fired again, taking the Brutes leader out in a flash of red. The rest of the apes lost it at the sight of their leader dying, and charged, roaring and throwing weapons. Samus charged up a few seeker missiles, each one hitting their targets, and Brute flew everywhere. She turned to find John already working on the AA, planting a Grenade in its exhausts port, so she started picking off the cowardly Grunts, ensuring they wouldn't be shot in the back later.

A quick check ensured the area was clear, so John began calling the Pelican back while Samus stood guard. She looked up at the battle above. The remnants of the Covenant Fleet, no more than a few ships, tried desperately to hold of the Elite separatists, who were pushing their advantage. Her mind flashed back for a moment, to a very similar conflict many, many years ago…

* * *

"_We can't hold them." Admiral Adam Malkovich muttered, his face showing anything but defeat. His words didn't match his posture, the proud commander of men defiant. They stood aboard the G.F.S Olympus, one of the fleets greatest warships. She had seen many battles, and triumphed over many an adversary. Now however, it seemed she had met her match. Samus had been reporting in when they had shown up, and the space battle ensued. _

_The Forerunners had been all but waiting for an excuse to attack humanity and her allies for centuries. Both empires had been existing with a fragile truce. When Humans had started glassing the Forerunners outer worlds, it was the excuse they had been waiting for. Of course, they had no idea what Humanity had actually been doing, and the evil they had been trying to fight…_

"_We can sir, we just need to hold out a moment longer!" A younger Samus shouted, standing on the platform below Adams command deck. The bridge crew were working at a frantic pace to try and hold the ship together. She looked outside to see another ship, the Valhalla, explode in a flash of bright orange, a sign of both fuel gel explosion, and the Promethean weapon systems the enemy favored. Adam shouted something which Samus didn't hear._

"_What?"_

"_Samus…"_

* * *

"Samus?" John said, standing right beside her. She felt the urge to jump, but reeled it in. She looked around, realizing she was still on the beach…that all of that happened long ago, and couldn't be changed.

"Huh? Sorry, must have daydreamed…" She said, using the first thing to pop into her head as an excuse. It seemed to have worked, and after a long look, John turned toward the Pelican that had now touched down, and was dropping off a Warthog.

"We're going to have to hoof it to the tower, the forest vegetation is too thick to fly through." John informed her, making his way to the driver seat.

"Right, ok good." She said, trying to focus on the present. She quickly jumped into the passenger seat of the Hog, while a marine jumped into the back. The Pelican took back off, informing them that she'd be close by should they need her. John gunned the engine, moving away from the shoreline and heading into the forest, using clearings as a road to reach their destination. They encountered little resistance, those few grunts unable to avoid the Hog or Samus's cannon fire.

They soon reached the Tower, a large monolith that stretched into the sky. A small hatch opened at its base, and a pair of the Prowler vehicles the Brutes favored sped out, both of them making a beeline for the Warthog. John wasted no time talking, immediately driving to put rocks between them.

"I have a plan, keep driving." Samus said, before immediately jumping out of the jeep. John did as he was asked, and sped off. Samus stepped into the stop the Hog had been and waited. As she heard the high whine of a Prowler nearing the corner, she began charging her weapon, and when it rounded the corner, she fired. The Brutes didn't have enough time to react, or room to dodge, and could only watch as the super missile crashed into the front of the vehicle, causing a massive explosion. Bits of Shrapnel fell from the sky, which caused Samus to chuckle. No matter what mood she was in, destruction always put a smile on her face.

She walked round the rock to find John had taken out his adversary as well, his Prowler almost neatly in half. She didn't have a clue how he'd done it, but she didn't really have a chance to ask, noticing him already walking into the large monolith. She quickly sped after him, giving a quick wave to the marine who'd been left to mind the Hog. She picked up speed, her thrusters kicking in. She rounded the corner, moving into the building at an alarming speed. She barely had time to register the pair of Hunters, or the fact they were charging John. She did however, notice an opportunity. Instead of slowing down or trying to change course, she sped up and ran right at the pair. The lead Hunter turned, bringing its shield to bare.

It might as well have been holding up paper.

Samus ploughed right through its armor, the sounds of metal on metal shrieking through the large room they were in. She flew right through the Hunter, worms and orange blood flying everywhere, and collided into the second. This one she didn't dash through, but did send it flying. The Hunter collided with a wall, worms flying out. It tried to stand, but its armor was dented, bent beyond function. Samus finished it with a quick missile, destroying the hulking monster. A hunter worm tried to squirm passed her, but she crushed it with her boot, its orange blood near identical to the color of her armor.

"Another ability huh?" John commented, coming up behind her. She shrugged, her visor depolarizing so he could see her face.

"Guess I'm just full of surprises." She shot back with a smirk. A slight noise made them both tense, the two of them raising weapons in an instant, and pointing them toward to source of the noise.

A lone Grunt stood there, quivering in fear. Samus took a breath, relieved, before placing a hand on John's rifle. "Hold up, I have an idea."

John tilted his head, a sign Samus had learnt meant he was doubtful, but he did so, lowering the weapon, but keeping it on hand. Samus then turned her attention back to the Grunt.

"Right, let's see if my translator is still working…" She said quietly to herself, flicking through the options on her visor until she reached the one she'd dubbed 'Covenant'. It was what she'd used to talk to the Elites and the Prophet on Delta Halo, and she hoped it would work for this Grunt.

"Hey there little guy, what's your name?" She asked it, getting down on one knee so that she was eye level. She was instantly reminded of when she woke up, her first sight also being a Grunt. The little alien recoiled, and for a moment, Samus thought it couldn't understand her.

"My name's Rayup, please don't kill me." It immediately spat out, beady eyes darting between her and John. She suddenly felt bad, Rayup probably saw her fly through the pair of Hunters in a blur. She needed the little guys help if her plan was to work though.

"Nobody's going to hurt you." She said, trying to sound as nice as possible.

"Not even the Demon?" Rayup said, his voice pitching at the mention of the word. Samus looked back at John, standing close behind her with his gun. Not raised, but threatening all the same.

"No, he won't. Promise."

The Grunt visibly relaxed, before tilting its head. "Why you no kill me?"

"Because I would like your help Rayup." Samus began. "I'd like you to tell me what's waiting for us further up this tower."

"You want Rayup to betray the Covenant?"

She nodded, the sudden thought that he might have a loyal streak popping up in her mind, but she pushed it back.

"Good. Rayup hate the Covenant, treat Unggoy like they're nothing." The little Grunt said with venom, before continuing. "The Jiralhanae have set up defenses on the top floor. They have Chieftain up there, and many large weapons."

"All on the one floor?"

It nodded. "Yes. Chieftain heard you and Demon were coming, wanted to pool all defenses around the towers controls."

She smiled, a plan already forming in her mind. She stood back up, standing beside John. "Thank you Rayup."

The Grunt blinked, looking between them and the exit behind them. "So…Rayup can go?"

"Of course, a deals a deal." Samus said, taking a step to the side so the Grunt could see the door clearly. It began making its way slowly, looking back at them occasionally. Samus noticed John beginning to raise his rifle. She quickly laid a hand on it and shook her head. He did his head tilt again but didn't continue his action. The Grunt stood before the door, took one last look at them, and ran for it.

"Why couldn't I shoot it? It's the enemy. We don't 'talk' with the enemy." John muttered, relaxing his posture. Samus gave him a look, narrowing her eyes and a hand on her hip.

"First of all, Rayup told me-"

"Rayup"? John asked.

"The Grunts name." Samus said dismissively before continuing. "Anyway, he told me what we should expect ahead, and that he hates the Covenant. I wasn't going to kill him for being helpful."

"It's the enemy." John repeated.

She blinked. What is he, a broken record?

"The Elites were your enemy as well, want to shoot the Arbiter in the head?" She said, voice low. John didn't reply, instead looked around the room, visor falling on the door way to the next room.

"So what did the gru-Rayup, have to say?" He asked after a moment's silence. Samus also looked toward their next doorway.

"The Brutes have piled themselves on the top floor, where the tower controls are. Apparently, they heard us coming and have backed themselves in a corner." She told him, filling him in. His shoulders slumped ever so slightly, another emotional queue she was beginning to pick up from him.

"That makes things tougher." He said dully. Samus chuckled.

"Not quite, I have a plan…"

* * *

Bracktanus ordered his Brutes about. They had to be ready. The Demon was coming, as well as the Hunter. Bracktanus had studied the both of them, and considered himself an expert. He knew they would have to fight him head on, no sneaking this time. His thoughts where interrupted when the sounds of the Elevator began ascending to his level. He barked a quick order, his troops getting into position. He sat at the back of the room, right in front of the controls, with his plasma cannon he favored.

The Elevator arrived, but nobody was on it. He huffed, sure this was a trick. He gave a quick order, sending in one of his lower troops to investigate the lift. He troop moved onto the elevator slowly, before pausing.

"Great Chieftain, I found…something."

"Is it a Human trap? One of their inferior explosives?" Bracktanus asked, half expecting the troop to blow up.

"No my Chieftain, it looks…like a forerunner relic!" He troop exclaimed, moving to pick it up.

"What? Bring it to me!" He roared, all thoughts of danger forgotten. The troop did as bid, quickly running over and handing the relic over. The relic was a sphere of some kind, bright in color and glowing faintly.

"Incredible…" He muttered. The other Brutes gathered around him, now all in the center of the small room.

"Marvelous…" He sighed. The ball began to glow, feeling warm in his hands. Suddenly, a nagging thought appeared in his head.

'Can't the Hunter transform into a sphere?"

And everything went white.

* * *

Samus stood there waiting for John, the sounds of explosions his queue to use the elevator to join her up top. She looked around the room, admiring her handy work. The Brutes had been as dumb as she expected. In fact, they had crowded around her, making the explosion all the more effective. She hadn't used a power bomb in a while, and it felt good to dish out that kind of destruction. All that remained of the Brutes were black scorch marks on the floor and walls, their bodies being vaporized instantly.

John finally made it, slowly walking off the lift platform and glancing around. When he reached her near the controls, his head tilted.

"What did you do?" he asked, his voice hinting at bewilderment. She chuckled.

"Full of surprises remember?" She said with a smirk, before tuning into the radio. "This is Samus, John and I have reached out tower's controls."

"Good, the Elites have just done the same. Deactivate the tower now." Keyes ordered.

Samus placed a hand on the panel. The whole thing was made of light, so she didn't actually touch anything, but it responded to her all the same. The dull hum of the building went silent, and the pillar of energy that connected it to the control room not far away vanished.

"Good, the Elites should be about to...that's two." Keyes informed them. Samus saw the second tower's energy dissipate as well, and then she looked at the third tower. It was still going.

"Johnson? Report." Keyes ordered from the radio. The line was silent, before an obviously distressed Johnson answered.

"Were pinned down, Brutes were lying in wait…" His voice crackled, the line filling with static.

"Johnson? Sargent?" Damn." Keyes growled. "John, take Samus and head back to the Beach, I'll send transport for you. Arbiter, can you and your forces make your way to the third tower?"

"It will be done." The Arbiter replied, before going silent once more.

"Good. I'll see to Johnson…" Keyes muttered before going quiet.

John exchanged a look with Samus, a look she had learnt all too well. Things had gone to hell.

"Come on, we'd better head back to the beach, wait for extraction." John said, making his way back to the elevator, Samus in tow.

The ride back to the beach was uneventful, the dead Covenant and ruined Prowlers the only landmarks they saw as they sped through the thick forest. The path seemed denser than before, but John expertly ducked and weaved between trees. Samus wouldn't go as far as to say she was completely at ease, but that might have been more due to the situation. Johnson…She hoped that he was alright. Out of all the people she had met in this time, he was one of the nicer ones. She'd even considered him a friend. She glanced at John as he drove, once again a wall of neutrality, unemotional. Were her and John friends? She couldn't honestly say.

Her thoughts her dashed as they arrived on the shoreline, just as their 'Transport' arrived. A large, odd shaped vehicle, in the usual UNSC colors touched down, the pilot hopping out. From the front, it was sort of T shaped, with two huge jet ports at the end of its wings. It was some kind of hover craft, clearly.

"So, Uhh, what the heck is that"? Samus had to ask, still unsure what she could compare the odd thing to.

"It's called a Hornet. Or the AV-14 Attack VTOL. VTOL stand for-"

"I know what it stands for!" She snapped. "But that thing does not look like an angry bug."

John simply shrugged, climbing into the pilot's seat swiftly. Samus noticed two 'passenger' seats, more hand holds really, one on each side. She rolled her eyes, stepping onto the right side. There was a small belt she could use to attach herself, a silver lining she guessed.

The craft took off, giving Samus little time to adjust herself. She took a wider stance, making it easier to keep her balance. John's voiced echoed through the radio.

"Once we join up with the Elites, we'll push for the tower." He informed her. "The Hornet has weapons, but only front facing. I'll need you to act as my weapon from the sides."

Samus nodded, before realizing he couldn't see her. "Consider it done."

She readied her cannon, switching it to her Wave beam. They didn't have to wait long, as soon Banshee fighters began to swarm them. Samus fired charged shots at them, the Wave beams lock on near impossible to dodge. Banshees that were hit either lost power and fell from the sky, or the pilot inside was electrified, and fell anyway.

She looked ahead, seeing them come up on the second tower. The Elites green Phantoms were just taking off, the two of them swarmed by even more banshees. The sight, like earlier, triggered a memory, and try as she might, Samus was powerless to prevent her re-living of it…

* * *

_Samus ran, heading for the docking bay of the Olympus. Security had reported that Promethean soldiers had boarded the ship, and she was damned if she was going to let them take the flagship. She burst into the large, vacant room. All the fighter craft were out, trying to protect the fleet from the Forerunners smaller ships. _

_The Prometheans had not been expecting such a quick response, and they certainly weren't ready for her. She had developed a bit of a reputation during this war, and she was certain these soldiers knew who she was. She shoulder barged the first one, his ornate armor fracturing under the force. She immediately pivoted, turning to face the others. Her cannon flashed as she fired, her Plasma beam ripping through the Hard Light shields the Forerunner troops favored. One returned fire, her shields flaring bright red in response. _

_Another boarding craft crashed into the hanger, and another. By this point, Federation marines had arrived. They ran in, their armor gray but similar to hers, and opened fire, using crossfire techniques to completely surround the intruders. Samus continued her rampage, grabbing one soldier by the throat and throwing him. The force of the throw actually hurled him back into space, his form vanishing into the darkness. She flipped and kicked, the sound of a neck breaking echoing throughout the room. A Promethean charged her. She summersaulted over him, bringing her cannon down on his head with force. A loud crack was the response, and the soldier fell without a sound, dead._

_The Federation marines all lined up beside her, their energy rifles raised. The Forerunners formed their own line, both sides facing each other. Samus noted they didn't seem to have a commander, which amused her. And then, he appeared. He stepped out of one of the boarding craft, and strolled toward the Forerunner line like he was taking a nice walk. The bravado immediately pissed her off._

"_Attention Promethean troops. You are outmatched, outgunned, and clearly out skilled. Leave now and I will let you escape. But, you are not taking the Olympus." Samus barked, glaring down this newcomer. He was tall, very tall. And his armor was different. Pulsing orange lines moved through the metal, like veins. His helmet was what creeped her out the most, a simple dome, with two glowing orange eyes. The stranger didn't reply, and for a moment was still. Then he waved his hand. _

_The Marines were sent flying through the air, And Samus along with them. She landed in a flip, and went to fire immediately. But the tall soldier raised his hand again, this time holding it in place. Samus found she couldn't move her body, try as she might. She struggled against her invisible bonds, as the stranger walked toward her, hand outstretched. The fighting resumed, both sides opening fire as her and her opponent stood smack bang in the middle._

"_Who are you?" Samus growled. In her experience, nobody could best her, and certainly not as quickly as he had. _

"_Someone important. Someone who you share a history." He answered. She blinked. Someone from her past? But how? She didn't spent much time around forerunners, and she'd certainly remember this guy. _

"_Who. Are. You?" She shouted, her anger flying over the top now. The Stranger chuckled, before a loud explosion knocked them both apart. _

"_Watch out!" A marine called out._

* * *

"Watch out!" John shouted. The Hornet suddenly veered, a Plasma shot from a Banshee barely missing. Samus heard a shout, and saw the pilot from the other side begin to fall. Samus didn't think, didn't hesitate. She unbuckled herself and jumped, snatching the man before he could fall too far. She immediately turned in midair, and fired her Grapple. The tip of the beam attacked itself to the edge of her side seat she'd been on, and stopped their descent.

"John! The Pilot went over but I have him. You need to land!" She shouted, trying to hold onto the man as best she could. With her free hand using the grapple, that left her cannon arm to try and wrap around him. Not only was this difficult, but it left them exposed, and she couldn't shoot at any enemy vehicles.

"I can't Samus. If we try to land we will be shot. Too many Banshees." John replied calmly. Samus however, could hear the hint of desperation in his voice, and knew he was trying his best to remain in the air. Samus looked around, desperate for ideas. She couldn't pull them both up, but they couldn't stay here. That was when a Banshee veered around and starting flying right for them.

Samus's gaze flicked to one of the Arbiters Phantoms, realizing it was actually pretty close to them. A quick idea formed in her mind. She activated her radio, keeping an eye on the ever approaching Banshee.

"Arbiter, can you hear me? Can you move a Phantom beside John's craft? Have a bit of a situation here." She shouted, trying to remain calm. She wasn't sure if the message had been heard, before a Phantom pulled up right beside them. The side lowered, revealing the Arbiter himself.

"That you have." He noted, eyes flicking between her and the pilot.

"Catch this guy." She shouted, and not waiting for a response, swung toward the Phantom. At the end of her swing, she let go of the pilot, who gave a startled cry as he began falling again. She didn't check to see if he made it, immediately turning to face the ever encroaching Banshee. She switched to her Plasma Beam and fired a charged shot, the entire front of the vehicle melting. It veered away, crashing into the coastal wall nearby.

Samus took a breath, a sigh of relief, before remembering the Pilot. She looked back to find he'd made it, and was standing beside the Elites on the Phantom. He offered a wave, a thank you she guessed. She nodded, before pulling herself back toward the Hornet, her Grapple pulling her along. She climbed back up to her seat and buckled herself in.

"Good work." John commented.

Samus didn't reply, just set about clearing the air of enemy Banshees. With a mix of Wave beam and Super missiles, she soon had the enemy on the run, forcing the few Banshees left to retreat. The team of Hornet and Phantoms soon arrived at the third tower, and Samus saw once again the enemy had retreated onto the top floor. Her little trick probably wouldn't work this time.

They landed, Elites piling out of the Phantoms and holding a position ahead, near the entrance to the building. The Arbiter stayed on his craft. The pilot got out, gave another nod to Samus and hopped in their Hornet. They made their way to the Elites, and all together, stormed the building. The lower floors were empty, and they soon reached the elevator controls. John called down the lift, but as it came down, Samus heard an odd noise. Kind of like a buzz.

"Drones." John called out, raising his rifle and pointing it upward. On que, Drones came flying out of the elevator shaft, swarming them. The little aliens darted this way and that, making it hard to hit them with conventional plasma weapons. John's ballistic rifle was alright, bullets moving faster than plasma, but not fast enough to her liking.

"Screw this." Samus said, charging up her wave beam, before firing its Wave buster alternate fire. Bullets might be fast, but lightning is faster.

The large purple stream of electricity jumped from Drone to Drone, none of them fast enough to dodge the electric death. Within moments, all the Drones lay dead on the ground, many of them smoking and burnt.

"Did someone order a bug zapper?" Samus joked, pretty proud of herself. The Elites, and John, looked at her like she'd spoken another language. She sighed, remembering she was the only one with humor around her, before stomping onto the lift, the others right behind her.

They rode to the top, and came face to face with the Brutes guarding the controls. A hammer Chieftain stood among them, and he leered at the sight of them.

"You will not touch the most holy tower." He snarled.

"I got this." Samus said, moving to stand in front of the group. The Brute laughed, as if she hadn't just gone around killings hundreds of his kind in the last few hours. She switched her beam to one she didn't typically use, and charged it up. Her cannon glowed white, occasionally flickering black. With a smirk, she fired. No projectile could be seen, but a moment later a loud boom sounded from the other end, and the Brutes all flew into the walls at a fast velocity. None of them got up. Samus didn't like to use her Annihilator beam often because it was one of few weapons that could actually drain her suits power. That said, it was pretty awesome to use once in a while.

She turned to look at John, and was about to open her mouth before John beat her to it.

"Full of surprises." He said, head tilt back. She rolled her eyes and made her way to the controls, John joining her. She pressed a hand against the controls, and the tower powered down. The Shield surrounding the control room flickered in protest, than finally died.

Samus looked up to see the Shadow of Intent moving in, the sounds of its Shipmaster coming to life in the radio.

"Now Prophet…your end has come." He began, but was interrupted.

A huge explosion appeared in the sky, a rift in space. From within the wormhole, emerged a giant structure. It only took a moment for Samus to recognize the descriptions she'd heard from John and the Arbiter, and immediately a chill ran up her spine.

"High Charity…by the gods, brace for impact!" The Shipmaster called out, High Charity passing just above them, and colliding into the earth out of sight. The floor shook heavily, and Samus had to concentrate on not falling. She looked up again to see bits of High Charity raining down, like a meteor shower. One of which was heading right for them. They ducked, Samus using her armor to protect John, as the piece of metal crashed through the window and collided with the Elites on the other end of the room. Not one of them survived.

They got up, and Samus instantly noticed the discoloration of the chunk. Her heart rate picked up.

From within the metal, Flood infection forms scurried out, immediately darting for the nearest dead bodies.

"Run!" Samus shouted, though John needed no order. They ran for the lift, bypassing the ramp and jumping onto the elevator. John slammed the button, causing the lift to suddenly descend. Samus could hear the screeches of the now walking corpses, and she shuddered. They made it to the bottom floor, still running. They burst through the door to outside, and found that Marines had been waiting for them. The soldiers had formed a line, firing at any Flood in sight. Samus followed John, who ran through the marine's defensive line, and headed for a group of vehicles present. He jumped in the tank, giving Samus Deja vu once again. She climbed into the gunner seat, ignoring the turret and waited.

"What's the plan?" Samus asked him.

"We're going to drive right for the control room, kill anything that gets in the way."

"Hmm, simple." She commented. The tank shot to life, moving toward a large tunnel ahead. They emerged in a snowy canyon, and encountered little resistance. What Covenant were around, seemed disorganized. Their final stand, Samus guessed.

They continued, moving toward the ever closer monolith building. The tank took care of the enemy vehicles, while Samus took out the infantry. They soon made it to the final stretch, a large open snowy field between them and the control room. John started moving across, the tank leaving tread marks in the snow. A loud boom, moving closer caught Samus's attention, and she looked up. Just in time to see the Scarab land in front of them, sending snow and sheet flying in all directions. John immediately changed course, moving to drive around the large vehicle. It slowly rose to its feet, and its 'head' swiveled to face them. John was pushing the tank to its top speed, but it wasn't fast enough. The Scarab fired, the beam searing the sides of the tank. Warning beeps began ringing, and the metal became hot. Really hot. Samus banged on the drivers hatch and jumped, turning to see if John followed suit. He had, bursting out of the driver's seat and flinging himself into the snow beside her. They looked up, the Scarab getting ready to fire again. Just as it was charging, a rocket exploded in its eye, denting the metal and shattering the plasma coils within. The Scarab began turning, moving to face its new foe. A small army of Hornets had descended from the sky, and were surrounding the big purple monster.

"We'll take care of this, go get that Prophet bastard." A marine shouted through the radio, before the Hornets began firing. Soon a squad of Banshee's joined in, the Arbiters Samus guessed. As if in answer, one came in to land on the ramp in front of them, and the Arbiter got out. He beckoned them over, gesturing to a control panel. They quickly ran up, and John palmed the controls. A light bridge lit up before them, spanning a large distance from their ramp to the large doorway for the control room. They all ran, moving as fast as they could.

They moved through the archway, arriving inside a very large, empty room with a big lift on the other side. They ran for the lift, and as they ran, the walls lit up, and before them appeared the Prophet of Truth.

"My faith will…stand firm. Though our enemies crowd around us, we tread the blessed path." His voice rang out.

"Must be a broadcast, not directed at us." Samus pointed out. She wondered if all of the Covenant, or what was left, were watching.

"In a moment, I will light the rings. And all who believe, shall be saved!" He cried, his face full of joy. He moved to the side to reveal two others with him. One was a Brute Chieftain, and the other, Samus was very familiar with.

She gasped.

Johnson struggled against the Brutes grip, face bruised and battered. However, he didn't look like he'd been broken, and was still fighting, even now.

"Chief? How close are you?" Keyes called out over the radio, desperation oozing from her voice. They looked up, watching the lift slowly come down to them.

"Not close enough…" John replied quietly. They piled onto the lift. Samus stood there impatiently as the lift ascended. She resisted the urge to yell, or tap her foot. She needed to remain calm. She stole a glance at the other two. The Arbiter was fidgeting, seemingly eager for the fight ahead. John was a stone, as usual. His body rigid and his emotions hidden. She wondered how much he actually cared.

The sounds of warped cries and screeches caught her attention, and she tensed.

"Flood."

"I know." John replied, rifle ready.

The lift finally reached the top floor, an expansive bridge now the only thing between them and the Prophet. John took one step, and was suddenly be fronted by two large Flood forms. They all raised their weapons, but before anyone could fire, they spoke, the eerie voice of the Gravemind reaching her ears.

"Do not. Shoot. But listen." It droned. "Let me lead. You safely. To our foe. Only you. Can halt. What he has. Set in motion." John lowered his rifle.

"No. No way. This is a trap." Samus shouted, looking at John like he was insane. She was about to shout at him more when he spoke.

"What choice do we have?"

Samus couldn't think of an argument, no matter how hard she tried. Every instinct told her not to trust the Flood, but then how would they reach Truth in time? A swarm of infection forms scurried from under her feet, moving forward onto the bridge. The huge lumbering Flood forms followed suit, moving ahead to carve a path for them. She exchanged a look with John, who she could tell wasn't happy either, before they moved to follow the Flood.

They encountered no resistance. The evidence they had been there was everywhere, dead bodies and new Flood forms abundant. Samus had to restrain herself from shooting, and she couldn't help but shiver everyone she got near one. They crossed the bridge within minutes, and emerged on the other side, the control room.

The room itself wasn't noteworthy, just a small, spherical shape. What did catch her eye though, was the Pelican that was half hanging of the platform, and the many dead Brutes around. Her eyes finally fell on Johnson, who was on his knees on the floor. She moved to check if he was alright, kneeling down beside him. It was only then, that she realized he held someone in his arms.

The lifeless eyes of Miranda Keyes stared at the ceiling, her arms hanging limply at her sides. Johnson closed her eyes, and took a big, sob like sigh. He looked up at her, his eyes full of pain, and none of the carefree joy she'd seen in them so many times before. Johnson looked past her, saying something to John, but she couldn't hear him. Her eyes fell on Keyes once more. The sight of her lifeless body triggered something, and once again, a memory began playing through her mind…

_Samus watched from afar as the Olympus exploded. A single tear fell down her cheek, as she watched from her gunship. She couldn't believe it. They'd won, the Forerunners had beaten them. She had never dreamed that the Olympus could be destroyed. Or that Admiral Adam could be…_

_She sobbed, falling to her knees. She wasn't armored, and felt a sting as she grazed her knee but she didn't care. Adam, Adam. No no no. Her chest hurt, like she'd just been stabbed. She slowly got back up, watching the explosions still happening. Her mind pictured his…body, floating in space. Lifeless, alone._

_She fell again, hugging herself into a fetal position, and cried. She lost track of how long she remained on the floor of her gunship, but she eventually managed to get up, and make her way to her ships tiny bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror. _

_The girl staring back looked utterly destroyed. Her eyes, usually bright white with that striking blue, were red and bloodshot from crying. Tear marks lined her cheeks, and her lips quivered. This girl, this person looked utterly destroyed. Samus hoped that she would never feel like this again, for anyone. Because this pain, was unbearable…_

Samus snapped back to reality at the sounds of the Arbiters roaring. She looked over to find he'd impaled Truth with his blade, letting the body slump to the floor. Samus looked down, a flash of rage popping up. She'd wished she could have been the one to kill him, or at least watch the life leave him…

Movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention. She looked behind her to see Johnson had picked Miranda up and was moving into the Pelican. She felt that pang in her chest again, and slowly stood up. She watched John press his hand to the main controls, and saw the lights indicating power die down.

It was over.

A loud, eerie laugh suddenly boomed, jarring her. Large tentacles emerged from under them, and Samus remembered the Flood in all of this. She felt anger well up inside her, and struggled to keep herself focused. The sounds of the Pelican taking off caught her attention, and she made a dash for its back entrance. She jumped, landing on the inside, turning to see John climb up beside her. The Arbiter leaped, securing a hand on the edge of the back ramp. Samus leaned down to grab his other hand and help him up, when the Pelican suddenly shook. The movement was sudden and violent, causing Samus to lose her footing. She fell, hitting the ground on her side. The Arbiter rose beside her, and she saw that John had also fallen out. The three stood up, standing back to back, weapons raised.

"Now the gate has been unlatched. Headstones pushed aside." The Gravemind echoed, its voice sounding triumphant. "Corpses shift and offer room. A fate you must, abide."

The Arbiters sword flared to life. "We traded one enemy for another."

"Told you so." Samus muttered.


	10. Chapter 9

**Hey all! Nearing the end of the story now, finally getting to the good parts! Now I don't have much to say this time round, so I'll let you jump right into it. Remember to review the chapter to tell me your thoughts and opinions, and fav/follow if you enjoyed it!**

**Alright, gonna go now. *runs away***

* * *

Chapter 9

John hit the ground with a hard thud, the impact reverberating in his bones. Above him, the sounds of the Flood echoed on the walls, screeches and screams sending a chill up his spine. He looked back up at the shaft he and the others had run for, the alien parasite hot on their tails. Johnson had radioed that he couldn't pick them back up, afraid that the Gravemind would lash out and destroy the Pelican. So they had run back the way they had come. All three of them had fired a continuous stream of deadly firepower, but the Flood just kept coming, ever true to their namesake. They had just made it to the service tunnel before they were overwhelmed.

The Arbiter landed in a head beside him, the sound of his impact echoing on the walls. Samus appeared last, sliding down a wall and landing on her feet. She looked back up the tunnel, her cannon ready, but no Flood had followed them. She moved to help the Arbiter up. John went to get up himself when we heard something. It had sounded like…a whisper.

He rose to his feet, moving to grab his rifle, which lay on the floor a few feet in front of him. He bent to retrieve it, and as he got up, movement caught his attention. He turned sharply, dimly aware that they had landed in some kind of large hallway, barely lit. An illuminated figure stood at the other end of the corridor, her body bright blue, and with what looked like streams of data running along her figure.

His heart skipped a beat.

Cortana looked him right in the eyes, as if she could see past his visor, and beckoned him over with a small wave. John didn't even think, he just started moving toward her. He faintly heard both the Arbiter and Samus call his name, but that didn't matter. He strode across the hallway, making a beeline for Cortana. She smiled at him, before turning and disappearing behind a corner. He quickened his pace, nearly jogging around the corner. He caught a brief flash of her moving behind another bend, and he continued his pursuit. He heard Samus call out again, and noticed his companions were following close by, but again, he didn't focus on it.

He came around the next corner, and once again saw a flash of her, this time standing in front of a control panel in front of a blank, flat wall. As he moved ever closer to her, he saw her touch the holographic controls, but of course she couldn't touch them. As he got within a few feet of her, she vanished, leaving him alone in the dark, save for the dim lighting from the controls and his own armor.

"John!" Samus shouted, the sounds of her quick footsteps reaching him. He didn't reply, his mind reeling. Did he imagine Cortana? If he did, how would she have led him here? He couldn't understand…

He looked down at the controls again, and this time, he placed an armored hand on them, feeling no resistance, and yet knowing they had responded. He heard a faint rumble from somewhere beneath them, and the wall in front of them began to shift near silently. If lowered into the floor, revealing the open sky on the other side. Beneath them was a cloud bed, the sky an afternoon orange. John peered in to the clouds, and thought he saw movement. A shape lay just beneath the cloud line, and had begun to slowly rise. The object was huge, and metallic, shining brightly in the artificial sunlight. As it rose, John began to recognize it. He heard the collective gasps of his companions as they too recognized the object, which had now left the cloud bank and was beginning to rise into the sky above them.

Halo.

The Halo ring was massive, though John noted the ring was incomplete. Entire strips of its inner and outer workings were exposed, and in some areas there just wasn't anything, save an empty hole.

"A replacement, for the one you destroyed." Arbiter noted, his words struggling to hold back reverence. John guessed he must on some level still revere the Forerunners.

Samus moved up beside him, her helmet flashing as it vanished, her bright blue eyes peering up at the massive construct. "The Ark must be a forge…" She said quietly, her hair flowing in the wind. She suddenly chuckled.

"So Spark, when did you know this was here?" She said loudly, and it was only then John counted that there were four friendly contacts on his HUD, not three. He heard the little A.I giggle in delight as it hovered to float in front of them all, over the lip of the floors edge.

"Just now." Spark said merrily. "But, I had my hopes." It floated to hover in front of John, its single blue eye staring him in the visor.

"What will you do now?" It asked him. John already knew. He knew the second he saw the ring, and he knew what it was that Cortana had been trying to tell him.

"Light it." He replied quietly. Spark nearly cheered, moving slightly higher as if jumping for joy.

"Then we are agreed!" It exclaimed. It quickly began to fly away toward the distant Halo, listing off things for itself to do. John watched it fade into the distance, before noticing Samus looking at him again. John wasn't certain, but she looked concerned.

"John. When you ran off just now" she began, "what did you see?"

He didn't want to answer. How could he? Saying that Cortana of all people had led him here, how he'd been hearing her nonstop in his head since arriving on earth. She would think he had fallen into insanity, or at the very least was suffering some kind of post-traumatic stress. Still, she'd stuck with him throughout the last few weeks. And something else, he couldn't pin it down, but something else told him he should tell her. In a way, Samus reminded him of Cortana herself…

"I saw…I saw Cortana. She led me to the controls." John admitted in a near whisper. He heard the Arbiter make a noise behind him, but his eyes were on Samus, waiting for her reaction. She looked at him, her face unreadable.

"Is this the first time you've seen or heard her?" She asked him firmly.

The question surprised him, but at the same time he felt relief. She hadn't just dismissed it, or called him insane. He decided then to admit everything.

"No. The first time was back on earth. It had sounded so much like her…I'd forgotten that I'd lost her, back on High Charity." He said, struggling to keep his voice emotionless. He could usually keep his emotions in check, but recently he'd begun to struggle with them. He didn't know if he was getting weaker, or his emotions were stronger than usual, but he'd been noticing it since earth.

Samus sighed, her neutrality replaced with a look of sadness. "I know."

"You knew?" He asked her, surprised.

She nodded. "You're a bank wall John, but even a wall starts to crack eventually. I noticed how you would react when you heard her. I'd suspected something was amiss." She said softly, her eyes scanning over his visor.

He suddenly felt guilt, and quickly realized that he'd been feeling it all along, he just hadn't understood what it was. He slumped, struggling to maintain himself.

"I just left her alone…" He whispered. An armored hand came to rest on his shoulder, and a sad looking Samus looked up at him.

"No. She made the choice, and she saved a lot of people, you included." She said softly, being unusually gentle. "Besides, she's strong. I'm sure she's still fighting, waiting for you to come and rescue her."

Rescue her. John had wanted to do that the moment he had left High Charity, but that hope had slowly died the more he had been apart from her. But now, John realized, as he spotted the distant crash site of the now Flood infested High Charity, that hope was suddenly a possible reality.

"I know how we can activate the ring." John suddenly announced, pieces of a plan falling quickly together. "It will be risky, near impossible. But I need to try. If I can retrieve Cortana from High Charity, than she can activate the ring." He quickly explained to the two of them, sad moment temporarily forgotten.

"How can she Spartan?" Arbiter asked, his mandibles clicking together as he thought.

John pointed to High Charity's crash site. "She has the activation index from the original Halo. She could use it again to switch this one on."

Samus frowned, before a look of determination flashed from her eyes. "You won't be going alone. I'll come with you."

"I can't ask you of that, this will be highly dangerous." John said, but Samus looked resolute.

She stood taller, and she looked over her shoulder at the crash site. "Someone's got to keep you alive. Besides…" She trailed off, a flash of sadness flickering in her eyes but for a moment. "I know what it is to lose someone close to you."

John frowned, thankful his face was hidden, but he didn't question. Samus had been nothing but nice, and he didn't want to stir up whatever she was thinking about. "Are you sure you want to come?"

She smiled, that fierce look in her eyes, the same one he'd seen time and time again when she was in combat. "I wouldn't miss this for the world."

"I too will join you Spartan. In light of all we have been through together, I consider you both more than brothers in arms, but family. I will not abandon you in your hour of need." Arbiter declared. "I will get us a Phantom, and we will walk into damnations gate. When we walk out, even the parasite will know why to fear us."

The tall alien moved slightly away, talking into his radio to signal for a pickup. John didn't know what to make of both of his friends acceptance for this task. Beside him, Samus chuckled, eyeing the Arbiter.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." She said with a smirk.

* * *

High Charity had seen better days. That's what John thought as they flew over its vast, ruined surface. The space station was large enough to be classed as a small moon, and as they sped over its bulbous form, John swore he could see shapes moving around within the cracks and holes of the outer layer. Writhing, malformed shapes.

The Phantom descended, coming to a stop just above an opening in the hull. Samus turned to John, giving him a smirk under her visor, before it lit up and she jumped out, her figure vanishing into the gloom below. The Phantom lowered itself further, and John himself jumped out, followed closely by the Arbiter. The fall was brief, and he came to a stop on something soft, and squishy. He realized grimly that he'd landed on Flood material, the fleshy substance collapsing under his weight and covering him in ooze and grime. He got up, the Arbiter landing a moment later and also swiftly rising, seemingly unbothered by the gore he too got covered in.

They had landed in what would have once been a hanger. But now, the ornate walls and large space had been converted, the entire room looking like something out of a horror movie. The walls pulsed, as the living tissue continued to spread throughout the station. Samus stood a few feet ahead of them, looking around the spacious room. She swiftly pivoted, aiming her cannon down a hallway and firing, the sounds of something shrieking the result. She lowered her weapon, glancing back at the two of them.

"Come on, we'd better start moving." She said grimly, her usual bravado and confidence missing from her voice.

John drew his rifle and moved ahead of her, taking point of the three man group. He moved toward the corridor Samus had just fired at, noticing the black scorch mark and blackened flesh of whatever she had killed. They moved as quietly as possible, every noise and slight movement making John's heart race. He noticed that Samus seemed the most affected, reminded of how much the Flood must scare her, and how she'd been so determined to accompany him.

The endless hallways blurred together as they crept throughout the eerie station. John lost track of time, their searching beginning to feel like hours. They eventually emerged into another hanger like area, one wall gone save for Flood materials. On the outside was a ledge, and John spotted a Pelican, probably some poor soldiers who had been unable to escape High Charity back at Delta Halo. It was in remarkable condition for what it must have gone through, and to Johns eye at least, looked fully functional. He made a note of that, a potential escape route.

They came to a stop in front of this opening in the wall, looking down at the rest of the space. There were corridors and walkways, both metal and flesh, all over the place. John realized that it could take forever to find their way around, much less find Cortana. Samus apparently had the same notion.

"This isn't working." She stated, a growl of frustration escaping her. Arbiter nodded in agreement, his cat like eyes flicking across the room.

"She is correct. We are in an endless labyrinth, with no knowledge of where our prize lies." He said, his grip on his Carbine taunt.

Both of them were correct, but how could they narrow the search? John racked his brain for an idea, but nothing sprung up. He usually relied on Cortana for this sort of thing.

And then it hit him. They did have someone with them who could help. Someone quiet, but no less helpful as Cortana.

"Samus, can I talk to Adam?" John asked her. She seemed to cock her head, but slowly nodded. She brought her hand up, and the A.I sprung to life within her palm, appearing as a high ranking officer in blue.

"Master Chief, how can I help?" Adam inquired, his tone instantly reminding John of Lord Hood. Some things must be imbedded in humanity, he noted to himself.

"Can you access High Charity's data banks? Perhaps scan the ship to pinpoint Cortana's location?"

A frown appeared on the A.I's face as he thought it over. "I could, but there is an issue. A scan that large will be impossible to hide. The second I access the Stations systems, the Flood will not only know, but know exactly where it's coming from."

John thought it over. If they did this, there was a possibility that they could be overrun. But if they didn't, they would be found eventually anyway. And this way, they would know exactly where she was. John made his decision.

"Do it" He told Adam.

The A.I nodded and vanished. Samus cocked her head, probably listening to Adam inside her helmet. She seemed to sigh, before turning her head back to John. "He isn't sure just how long this will take, but he is certain that the Flood will be on us within thirty seconds maximum. We don't have a lot of time…"

"I'm beginning access. Everyone be ready." Adam's voice told them through the radio. And for a moment, everything was silent.

And then John heard a screech. Faint, in the distance. And then he heard another, slightly closer. The chorus of screams and wails continued, moving ever closer to their position. He readied his rifle, Samus doing something similar beside him, her cannon flashing to a different beam. The Arbiter growled, eyes darting every which way.

"Adam…What's the status?" Samus said, stress leaking into her voice. The A.I didn't reply. John began to feel sweat on his brow. The noises were closer now, the sounds of faint marching footsteps were now noticeable, echoing from the tunnels ahead.

"Adam…!" Samus said, her voice both fierce and scared. John felt like joining in on calling Adam but he kept his focus, trying to guess which tunnel they might come out of first, based on the sounds. But the sounds were everywhere now, and he couldn't pinpoint any of their origin. The sounds were very loud now, near defining.

"Got it! Uploading co-ordinates to your-"Adam started to say. And then the walls exploded.

Flood poured into the room from every conceivable direction, all of them running right for the trio. John opened fire immediately, his rifle rounds punching through squishy flesh and bursting fragile infection forms. The Arbiter did similar, the rounds from his Carbine leaving bright green marks on those it hit. It too had similar punching power, and together they created a crossfire that shredded the many, smaller enemies. Samus meanwhile had decided to handle the larger, more menacing opponents. Large, cumbersome Flood forms melted under the fire from her Plasma Beam, and Froze from her Ice Beam. Together, the three killed dozens within the first few seconds of combat. But more and more poured in, and soon the Flood gained ground, creeping ever closer to them. They slowly retreated, moving through the opening they stood in and out onto the ledge with the Pelican. The tempo of the battle began to shift, and the Flood started gaining ground faster. They would soon be overwhelmed, and not even Samus's armor would be able to save them. John looked back to the Pelican, a reluctant idea forming in his mind

"Keep them off me." He shouted, fighting to be overheard amongst the screams and weapon fire. Samus nodded, though didn't turn to him, too busy firing into a massive Flood forms face. John turned swiftly, darting inside the Pelican and moving right for the cockpit. He tried the ignition, silently praying that it would start. His heart jolted when he felt the large transport shudder to life, the sounds of the engines roaring loudly. He pressed a few keys, preparing the Pelican for takeoff.

"In, now!" He shouted. Arbiter ran for the back hatch, turning back to continue shooting. Samus however, was stuck. The Flood had finally pushed up to their position and she was surrounded. She struggled with another large shape as it tried to smother her, others rushing in, sensing a kill. John got out of the pilot seat, prepared to run in and help her.

"No!" She shouted, her figure appearing momentarily. "Go!"

John hesitated, torn between doing the smart thing, and doing the right thing. A Flood jumped onboard, promptly killed by the Arbiter, but none the less pointing out to John that they needed to leave.

"Go dammit!" Samus screamed. He couldn't see her anymore. He made a snap decision, and returned to the pilot chair. He pushed the throttle forward, edging the Pelican away from the edge. He looked behind him, and wished he hadn't. The Flood now completely covered the platform, and any signs of Samus were gone. He felt a pit in his gut, similar to when he'd left Cortana back at Delta Halo. The Arbiter sighed, looking away from the pile of death. John felt he should do the same, but he couldn't look away.

A large explosion suddenly sent Flood flying off the platform, some tumbling off the edge, others splattering into the wall behind them. A banged up Samus came sprinting out of the explosion, more Flood already chasing after her. She ran right for the ledge, and jumped, her armor carrying her much further than any normal human. Even then, she came up short, beginning to fall. Her grapple beam shot out at the last moment, latching itself onto the edge of the back hatch of the Pelican. John immediately pushed the thrusters, moving the Pelican further up, away from the Flood. Beneath them, he could hear the monsters cries as they lost their pray.

He got up from the cockpit and moved to help her up, grabbing ahold of her hand and pulling her up onto the back hatch. She thanked him, sitting on the edge, panting. She de-activated her visor, her eyes wide with barely contained panic. They both looked down at the ever shrinking forms of the horrors below them, and John suppressed a shudder.

"I'm sorry…" He started, aware of how that must have felt for her, and for not being able to help her. She shrugged him off, still breathing heavily.

"Don't be. It's ok." She said, her voice breathy. She slowly got up, her breathing returning to normal. "So, what do we do now?"

John sighed. "Honestly? I don't know. There's just too many to fight, going back in would be suicide…"

Samus frowned at him. "We can't just leave Cortana down there…"

"I didn't say that." John said, cutting her off. No, he would rather go back in alone than leave Cortana to her fate. Not when they were so close. "Did Adam get her location?"

"Indeed I did." Adam said through his radio. "She's within a small room close to the main engines of High Charity. I uploaded the exact co-ordinates to Samus."

John frowned. If their task had been impossible before…

"I'll go." Samus suddenly said, staring at John hard.

He immediately shook his head. "No. That's suicide."

"Not if you and the Arbiter create a distraction." She said. "Keep the attention on you. I can move through grates and smaller passages quickly. I can retrieve her before the Flood even know I'm there."

"It's too dangerous. You could..." John began, unable to finish his reply.

Samus folded her arms. "What? Die? Do you have a better idea?" She said, glaring at him now.

He didn't. Try as he might, he couldn't think of a plan where they would all come out alive, Cortana included. He glared back, Samus unable to see his face, before finally sighing. She relaxed slightly. "John, trust me. Please."

Those words caught his attention. They were almost the same words he'd used on her awhile back. The irony was not lost on him, but they did ring truth. He might not have at the start of their journey, but he did trust her. "I do."

She nodded, glancing down behind her with a grimace. "Alright then, here we go…"

She turned back to look down below, and took a shaky breath. John grabbed her shoulder, causing her to look back at him expectantly.

"…Be careful." He grunted, his emotional limit reached. She chuckled, though he could see she was afraid underneath.

"Don't worry, someone's got to keep showing you up." She said, before winking. Her visor activated again, flashing bright green, and without another word, she jumped of the hatch, back down toward the Station. John saw her land on its outer hull, before disappearing through a crack.

"What now Spartan?" Arbiter asked, coming to stand beside him.

"Now, we make a lot of noise." John said.

* * *

"You could have handled that better." Adam remarked, his tone condescending.

Samus scoffed, though her situation was not humorous at all. She'd quickly come to a service tunnel, just large enough for her to fit in via Morph Ball, and she had been rolling through it for what felt like forever. Truthfully her grand exit had only occurred mere minutes ago, but to her it felt like hours.

"I handled it fine." She said, shuddering as she rolled through yet more Flood goo. The tunnel was full of it, and she was glad she was armored.

Adam tutted. "You handled it like a scared child, eager to prove something."

That got to her, the familiar feelings of anger threatening to swell up inside her. "Are you saying I shouldn't try and retrieve Cortana?"

Adam didn't reply. "That's what I thought." Samus said, proud she'd won the argument. "How far does this tunnel go?"

"It should take us pretty close to the engine room itself. If we're lucky, we should be able to reach her without encountering any Flood." He informed Samus, his tone shifting back to its usual business state.

She made a sound of annoyance. "Yeah, because we're so lucky…" She groaned. A particularly sticky Flood mess stuck to her, some of which didn't come off. "I'm going to have to give the suit a good polish after all of this is over…"

The sounds of chittering caused her to stop moving, remaining still in the tunnel. She caught movement on her motion tracker. Flood. A lot of them, all beneath her. They had no clue she was even there, but that could change if they heard her. She continued rolling, slowly, afraid to set any of the monsters below off. She crept at a snail's pace, the sounds of the Flood below sending chills up her spine. She didn't know what was worse, their wails and cries when they were fighting, or when they were docile. She cleared the room, the dots on the tracker fading behind her, and she continued on her way.

"What do you think of John?" Adam suddenly asked, causing her to jump. She groaned, noting once again that he had terrible timing.

She sighed. "What do you mean? I think he's a terrific soldier, and a very capable fighter. You know, next to me anyway."

She swore she could feel Adam's disapproval, even though he wasn't visible. "That's not what I meant. What do you think of him? Would you consider him a friend?"

This brought her up short, momentarily forgetting where she was and what she was doing. "Well, I mean…I don't know. It's been awhile since I've had a friend. Besides you." She noted, truly thinking on it now.

Adam chuckled. "Well, he seems like a good man. I think it would be good for you to make some friends."

She rolled her eyes. "Right. I'll get right on that after saving the entire galaxy." She grumbled, causing another quiet laugh from Adam. Her tracker went off again, once again causing her to come to a near stop. She began to move across when the pipe she was in made a loud groan, the metal protesting her weight. The chitters and squeaks went dead underneath her. Samus felt sweat on her brow, her heart pounding. She remained like this for a solid minute, before the noises began under her again, and she took a relieved breath. She continued to roll forward slowly.

The metal under her gave out, and she fell out of the tunnel.

She landed on the ground below, instantly changing out of her Morph Ball, cannon ready. But no Flood were lying in wait, the corridor she had erupted into eerily empty. Her tracker didn't display any signs of movement. She sighed, relaxing slightly.

"Well, I guess that options out of the question." She said quietly, looking up at the hole in the ceiling. She was pretty flexible, but she doubted she could get back up there and inside.

Adam coughed, a pointless thing for him to do but it did get her attention. "We aren't too far actually, the main engine is just a couple of rooms away." He informed her, her mini map flashing as he showed her the information on her visor.

She nodded, looking up and down the corridor before beginning to move toward the engine room. She moved into the next room, but again found it oddly empty. She started to feel like her luck might be something else, and she felt a chill run up her spine. She moved into another walkway, this one leading into the engine room according to her display. She moved up to the opening into the massive room, peeking through what would once have been a doorway of some kind, and felt her stomach do a flip.

Inside, Flood were crammed in tightly. They covered the floor, up the walls, and crawled all over the ceiling. The entire room looked to be just a giant living mass, Samus could hardly believe her eyes. She wished she could not believe it, and that she could be anywhere but where she stood right now. More practically, she also noted that there was no way she was going to be able to sneak through all of them unnoticed. Eyes and who knew what else looked everywhere.

"Adam, why do you think they all-"

A voice interrupted her, a loud, and yet soft voice. One that promised pain, and also peace. It spoke as if make of many different voice speaking as one, and it made her hair stand on end. Worst of all, she recognized it instantly.

"I know you have come for, her." The Gravemind uttered, its soft voice sounding somehow loud at the same time. "But we exist together now. Two corpses, in one grave."

Samus's mind was reeling. "It…It knew? But how? How could it know I was here?" She said, desperate to understand. Adam remained silent, just as unsure.

"I know you hide from me, child of my enemies. But I will find you. And we will also exist together." It taunted her, its voice sounding peaceful, but saying anything but.

Samus struggled to keep her breathing in check. The last thing she needed was to have a panic attack. "It can't. I have the block, it can't assimilate me" She said quietly, more for her own benefit than anything.

The Gravemind continued, and replied, as if it could read her thoughts. "I know you still carry the block, gifted by your Chozo forbearers." It began, its tone oozing acid, clearly disliking the mere mention of the word Chozo. "But I will find a way through it, for I have all of time to try. You will rejoin those that you cared for. Those you left behind…"

It felt like she'd just been smacked in the face. Left behind? She growled, struggling to keep herself composed and calm. "I didn't leave anyone behind…" She thought, feeling anger swell up inside her.

A distant explosion caught her attention. And another, and another. The Flood within the engine room began screeching, the noise so loud Samus wished she could cup her ears.

She somehow managed to hear the Gravemind over the noise. "He comes. He comes for her, like a hero of old. But he will never reach her." It said, sounding like it was sneering. "We will continue our game later, star child."

The Flood suddenly began leaving the room, a mass exodus. They ran through doorways, crawled through cracks, moved through any opening they could fit through. Samus realized quickly that they were coming right for her. She didn't think. She quickly shifted to Morph Ball and rolled herself into a corner beside the doorway. Mere moments later, the floor rattled with the amount of bodies that came running through. Her heart was thundering in her chest, but Samus remained still, even when every bone in her body wanted her to run.

As quickly as they had come, they vanished, the sounds of their screams moving toward the source of the explosions. Samus shifted out of Morph Ball, peering down the corridor in the direction they'd run in. She hoped John knew what he was doing.

She cautiously moved into the engine room, able to appreciate just how vast it really was. The roof spanned far above her, barely visible from the floor. Smack bang in the center, was the core of High Charity, a massive purple pillar surrounded by holographic controls. When she was certain that no Flood were lying in wait, she quickly moved across the room, heading for the final corridor before Cortana's room. She moved swiftly, not wanting to linger, and when she reached the final corridor she sighed in relief. She moved to the door that now stood before her, and pushed the button to open it. The door moved silently, gliding into the floor, and exposing the room ahead.

The room itself was tiny, containing very few things of interest. The main thing that caught her eye, was the pedestal in the middle of the room. It stood a few feet from the ground, covered in a little dome shield on its top. And under the dome, was an illuminated figure, feminine in appearance.

Samus slowly moved toward the pedestal, twitchy. She didn't want any surprises. "John? Can you hear me? I've found her" She said to the radio, but static was her only reply. She could still hear the sounds of gunfire in the distance, so she assumed he was still alive. She looked down at the dome shield.

"Right, let's just remove this pesky thing…" she muttered, raising her cannon.

* * *

John had forgotten how many bullets he'd chewed through, but that didn't matter, he still had plenty more. Ahead of him the endless hordes of Flood continued to try and reach him, to no avail.

"They swarm us, do not waver Spartan." Arbiter yelled, flamethrower in hand as he torched a Flood that had gotten too close.

After Samus had jumped ship, the two of them had discussed exactly how they could create a distraction big enough to draw the Floods attention. They'd come to the conclusion that acting as bait would work, but how then to stay alive? They didn't want to end up like last time. That was when John had found the turrets.

Parking the Pelican back on the same ledge they had found it, John had set up a choke hold at the opening to their ledge. The turret he used mowed down entire waves of Flood in a flash, with plenty of bullets to spare. The Arbiter, meanwhile, wielded a flamethrower turret, which he carried with ease. Whenever a Flood got through the turret fire, or was particularly sneaky, he turned it into ash.

John thought he heard his radio flare up, but all he heard was static, so he continued to focus his attention on firing.

"Come on Samus…" He muttered under his breath, once again silently praying.

* * *

Samus got down on her knee to look at Cortana. The barrier was easy to remove, and yet she'd stayed laying down, unmoving. Samus felt a pit in her gut but she ignored it.

"Cortana? Hello?" She tried, wondering if the A.I could even hear her.

Cortana didn't respond right away, making Samus fear the worst. "Another trick, not real…" She heard Cortana sigh, her avatar finally moving. She looked up, staring through Samus as if she wasn't there.

"What? No, it's me. It's Samus. I'm here with John." Samus tried, confused. What had the Gravemind done to her?

That seemed to get her attention, and Cortana sifted her gaze slightly, her eyes now focusing on Samus. "John? He's…He came for me?" She whispered, sounding close to tears.

"Of course he did. When that guy makes a promise…" Samus said, happy that Cortana was still whole, mostly.

The A.I smiled, and her dimly lit body began to glow brighter. "He keeps it." She said, beginning to stand up. "I do know how to pick them." She said, a hint of her old self returning.

Samus chucked, de-activating her helmet. "Lucky you." She said with a smile, which caused Cortana to smile back. "Are you ok?"

The A.I's smile dropped slightly. "No, I'm not ok, but seeing you has made my world a whole lot better." She said earnestly. She looked around, probably noting her surroundings for the first time. "Got an escape plan?"

Samus shrugged. "Run like hell and hope I don't die?" She said, smirking. Cortana rolled her eyes, before she chuckled.

"Alright, well how are you getting me out of here?" She asked, a reasonable question.

"Well, the same way you would with John. You're going to have to ride around inside my head…" Samus replied, feeling a little uncomfortable. Truth be told, she had the insert slot on the back of her head, but she'd never had an actual A.I inside her, not even Adam. Cortana looked equally uncomfortable.

"Oh…" She said. "Well, hope Adam made room then." She chuckled. Adam grumbled out loud, causing the two to chuckle. Samus then went to retrieve Cortana, removing a chip to store her in. Cortana's avatar vanished, and the chip lit up, indicating she was inside. With a deep breath, Samus moved her hair aside and placed the chip in the slot on her head.

"Huh. This isn't so-"She started before suddenly gasping, a brief flash of searing pain flaring up in her head. The feeling soon passed, replaced with a cooler, soothing effect. Cortana chuckled, her voice not coming from a speaker but from inside Samus's head

"Sorry, should have warned you." She commented, before going silent. "So…this is what it feels like to be a woman? Have to say, just feels more right." She said after a moment's pause, appreciation in her tone.

Samus chucked. "Don't get used to it, you're going right back to John when we get back." She commented, still uneasy with the voice in her head. She suddenly understood more what it must have been like for John, when Cortana hadn't been there to hear. Poor guy.

"Well, let's go." Samus said, turning and sprinting for the doorway. She ran through the corridor and out into the engine room, moving across its vast space.

"Wow, you've been through a lot haven't you?" Cortana commented randomly. Samus came to a stop, stunned.

"Are you…Are you going through my mind?" She asked, slightly ticked off.

The A.I chuckled. "And you suits databanks. Sorry, couldn't resist, there's a lot of interesting information here-"she began, before feeling Samus's level of annoyance. "Uhh, sorry…"

Samus sighed. "Its fine, just ask next time. Don't like people snooping around me, especially in my own head." She said with a chuckled, beginning to run again. She glanced at the core as she ran, and once again came to a stop. "Hmm…hold up a sec."

"What are you doing?" Cortana asked, as if she couldn't just read Samus's thoughts.

Samus grinned, aiming her cannon at the core. "Kicking the Gravemind in the nuts."

She fired, several missiles impacting the core and causing gold and blue explosions. A warning siren began to beep repeatedly, and a distorted voice began saying 'evacuate' in the Covenants native tongue. She had a sense of Déjà vu.

"How many times have you had to escape an exploding planet/space station? I could count, but I don't want to be rude." Cortana commented, which make Samus roll her eyes.

"Can you estimate how much time I have before we all go boom?" She asked Cortana. A countdown flashed on her screen, with far less time than she would like.

Cortana coughed. "I suggest you start running."

"What is it with A.I's and coughing?" Samus asked loudly as she began to sprint. He thrusters kicked in quickly, and she picked up speed. A loud roar boomed throughout the station, seeming to pierce Samus's body, but she kept running.

"The Star child has doomed us!" The Gravemind roared, sounding like it had actually been kicked in the nuts. "I will destroy you Samus Aran! I will torture you for eternity, flay you for all of time."

She shuddered, truly believing in the creature's words, but she kept running. She reached where she'd fallen out of the ceiling pipe, and continued. She tried the radio again. "John? Come on you green di-"

"Samus? Come in over." John replied, and Samus could not be happier to hear his voice. She couldn't pinpoint why exactly, but she was glad he wasn't dead.

"John?" Cortana said, her voice a mix of joy and shock, as if she still didn't believe he had come.

"Cortana? Are you ok?" He said immediately

"Fine, though were coming in hot." Cortana informed him.

"So fire up the engine, we need to leave, now." Samus added, flying past a group of Flood, who instantly began to pursue her. She kept running, taking an endless amount of bends and turns, before she finally saw two blips on her tracker. Friendly blips.

She burst into the large hanger they had originally exited from, and spotted both John and the Arbiter in the entrance near the pelican, fighting of a mass of Flood. Samus sped through them, her armor getting covered in splatters. John saw her, and immediately turned to activate the Pelican, and get it in the air. The Arbiter kept his rear protected, spewing fire at the Flood who got too close. Samus reached them in moments, skidding to a stop just short of the back hatch. She quickly stepped on, nodding to John. John began to takeoff, the Pelican roaring to life.

Their ascension was suddenly halted. Samus peeked out and saw a tendril clinging to one of the ships rear thrusters. She fired a missile at it, causing it to recoil and let go. They sped away at a fast velocity, the explosions that rocked High Charity growing smaller as they moved further away. Samus took a breath she didn't know she was holding, and sighed in relief. She saw John get up and move in front of her. She didn't need to ask.

She de-activated her helmet, and removed the chip in her head. Her head was silent once again, just the way she liked it. She wordlessly handed him the chip, and took another big breath, drained both physically and mentally. She watched as John placed the chip inside his own head, and smiled faintly, glad she had reunited the two.

"Well, what happens next?" Cortana asked, appearing in the cockpit. John turned to her, before looking back at Samus and the Arbiter.

Samus swore she could hear his smile. "Alright, here's the plan."


	11. Chapter 10

**Oh look, another chapter! And so soon! I had this all planned out from the start, so part of it was already written, lucky right? In any event, I'll be posting an epilogue tomorrow but other than that, the journeys over. I'll save my final thank you's for the end so, until then, enjoy and let me know how much you've enjoyed the ride. Peace.**

* * *

Chapter 10

"Will you not come with us brother?" The Shipmaster asked the Arbiter somberly, a lingering sadness in his tone. The trio now all stood in the Pelicans cockpit, while below them the Shadow of Intent remained motionless. It wouldn't stay that way for long, for as soon as they had gathered everyone they could, Humans and Elites, would return through the portal and head back to Earth. This was, their last chance to go with them.

The Arbiter declined, his voice resolute. "No. This is our fight. And I will see it finished."

Samus watched the Halo loom ever closer, and began feeling anxious. This was it. Once the Halo went off, it would all be over, at least theoretically. But Samus and well thought out plans dad never worked well with each other, so she couldn't help but feel doubtful that this would go smoothly. They entered what little atmosphere the Halo had, a snowy white background beginning to take shape.

"Johnson, do you have the frigate?" Cortana asked, her little Avatar standing on the dashboard. The Plan was to land, get to the control room and activate the ring. After that, they would all run for the Forward unto Dawn and escape through the portal before the ring went off. At least, if it went that smoothly.

Johnson's gruff voice crackled through the radio. "Yes Ma'am, I'll land her as close to the control room as I can."

Samus had noted that Johnson referred to Cortana as a 'Ma'am', while he called her pretty lady. She wasn't sure whether this bothered her or not. She certainly didn't see herself as a Ma'am, and yet she wasn't overly fond of lady either. But this was something she could talk to him about when they got back to earth. Who knows, maybe she might even do something social, make friends.

"Safe is better than close, Sargent major." Cortana scolded him, using his rank instead of his name.

"Roger that." Johnson said, a moments silence passing before he added truthfully. "And Ma'am? It's good to have you back."

John began to bring the Pelican in for a descent, but the damaged engines had finally had enough. As they neared the ground, inside of a snowy canyon, they gave out, causing the ship to drop the last few feet and grind against the ground. They came to a stop when the Pelican collided with one of the canyon walls, snow already settling on the now still vehicle. John opened the back hatch, and they all climbed out.

Samus gazed around their surroundings, admiring the scenery. It was only recently she had been on a Halo, and yet she could still admire the majesty of it. Assholes the Forerunners might have been, but at least they could make their weapons look pretty.

Cortana interrupted her thoughts. "Halo. It's so new, unfinished…" She said, pretty much summing up how Samus felt. "I'm not exactly sure what will happen when we fire it."

John grunted, grabbing a rifle out of the snow. He moved to stand beside Samus, the snow reflecting off his golden visor. "We'll head for the portal. And we'll all go home."

"Home…" Samus muttered quietly as they began walking. She hadn't thought too much about what she would do after all this, but now that they were close to the end, the thoughts came flooding in. What would she do? Retire? Find a home on Earth and try to fit into society?

"You alright?" John's deep voice interrupted her mental anguish. She jumped, not realizing she'd spoken that loudly.

She sighed. "Yeah, just unsure about my future. How do you settle into a society a hundred thousand years younger than you?" She said sadly, to no one in particular. John didn't reply immediately, the only sounds the wind and the crunch of snow under armored boots.

"You could always join the UNSC." He said, staring straight ahead. "You're one hell of a soldier Samus, and humanity could always use someone like you to protect them."

This got her thinking. Could she do it? Join another army? It surprised her when she realized it didn't sound as bad as she thought it would. She was used to a military style life on her own, she could fit into the UNSC Hierarchy. She snapped out of her demeanor to take in their surroundings. They had entered a cave, or a tunnel. Icicles hung from the ceiling, and the walls shone with frozen ice. She saw light ahead, and decided to quell the future thoughts, at least for the moment.

They emerged into a large, open snowy field. Devoid of any specific landmarks, the field was surrounded by rocky walls all the way around. On the left side was a snowy ledge, Samus figured it could be walked on, if they could get up there.

The one true thing of note was the large, monolithic Forerunner building in the center of the field. It was built near similar to a pyramid, with what appeared to be several stories. The pyramid was covered in a spiraling walkway, which led to the top of the building. Samus suspected that this was the building they needed, but gave it a curious scan none the less.

[_Building designation: Halo Control Room. This building houses the main controls for the Halo super weapon. Usually guarded by Forerunner automations. Caution advised.]_

"This is the place." Samus confirmed, her scan telling her everything she needed to know. John nodded.

"Once were in we only have a short window to activate the ring and leave. We only get one shot." He told them. Nobody questioned or argued. The trio began to make their way toward the large structure, John leading the way. He led them towards one of the walkways, one of which started on the ground level, partly covered in snow.

Samus kept waiting for an ambush. Forerunner machines or Covenant fanatics. But nothing attacked them, nothing sprung out of the ground. They made it to the walkway and began making their way up. Again, Samus waited to be ambushed, her eyes darting in all directions and her cannon ready. But none came. John continued to lead them up, his posture relaxed but ready. Arbiter seemed just as anxious as she was, his mandibles flexing and low growls escaping him.

They continued up until they'd made it to the top, uncontested. The top was nothing more than a flat floor, with a door built into the cliff face it pressed against. John moved toward the door, looking for some kind of control.

"Samus, can you scan the door? Get it to open?" John asked her, still looking along the walls next to the door.

She did as he asked, but the door wouldn't respond to her. It was as if it was being intentionally shut from somewhere else. Samus suddenly got a sinking feeling in her gut. What if they're good luck was actually far from it?

"John? I think we might want to keep our guard up." She said. And then she heard a scraping noise from behind her.

She whirled, just in time to be bowled over by a massive Flood form. The colossal thing virtually collapsed on her, pinning her to the ground. How had she not seen it on her HUD? The damn thing must have been moving slowly, she thought to herself. The vile thing coughed, bile landing on her helmet and chest. She noted her shields began draining. This wasn't good.

The thing coughed again. "Did you think me beaten?!" It spoke, the voice of the Gravemind emitting from its excuse for a mouth. Samus was on the verge of panic now. She struggled and kicked, but the monster was too heavy. She couldn't move it. "I will consume you, star child. I will crawl under your skin and make you my plaything." It said, quietly, intimately. Samus felt like screaming.

A green blur collided with the monster, pushing it a few feet. The space was enough for Samus to shove away, managing to pull herself further apart from her tormentor. She looked up, needing to know what was happening. John now stood toe to toe with the massive Flood, but even he was dwarfed by the monstrosity. Samus shuddered at the thought of how many corpses it was composed of.

John unloaded his rifle into the creature, but it brought up a fleshy arm to shield itself. It lashed out, knocking him off his feet and onto his back. John sprung up in a heartbeat, moving into melee range. He began swiftly jabbing and kicking the creature, the force of his blows capable of shattering bone, Samus knew this first hand. But the Flood shrugged of the blows like they were mere flicks. It swiped at John again, its speed fast for its size. John's shields flared gold and he collapsed, pushing himself up again in an instant.

Samus watched him fight, and urged herself to get up and help him. But she couldn't. It was as if she was frozen, unable to push herself up from her feeble position on the ground. Her breathing was rapid, and all she felt like doing was running. She realized surprisingly that she was having a panic attack.

The Arbiter lunged at the Flood from behind, his energy sword sizzling its flesh and burying itself in the creatures back. It roared, flailing its limbs in a spinning arc. Arbiter couldn't dodge in time, and was sent skidding across the floor into a wall. He struggled to get back up, but it was clear that he was injured. John continued his relentless assault, but again the Flood shrugged him off. It swept at his legs, knocking them out from under him, but this time it lurched forward, pinning him the same way it had done Samus. Acid oozed from its mouth, sizzling as it hit Johns shield. And John's shields were not as effective as hers were.

"Cortana…" it hissed. "I will make you watch as I destroy your hero, you're Spartan. You will scream as I turn his insides outside, and make his mouth say my words." It taunted. John's shields flared one last time, and died. Something in Samus snapped. In the moment, she knew she had to get up and save John. She knew what she needed to do, no matter how dangerous. She got up and stared at the creature that inspired such fear in her.

In that moment, she wasn't afraid anymore.

She ran at it, using her shoulder as a battering ram. She couldn't knock it as far as John did, but she did push it far enough. It roared at being interrupted and wrapped its arms around her, pinning it to its body. Her shields flared in protest to the acid, and the force of the things grip. It chuckled.

"Foolish girl. You do not learn. You have never learnt." It said softly, as if saying something kind. Samus stared up into its ugly horrifying face, and laughed.

"Yeah, except this time my cannons pointed at your head."

She roared and fired, a huge burst of Plasma streaking from her cannon, illuminating them both. Her suit flared heat warnings but she ignored them. She kept firing, the blast larger than the opening on her cannon. The Gravemind roared in pain as the Flood it controlled burnt and melted simultaneously. It struggled to move away, but now Samus kept herself pinned to it. Her shields were close to failing, warnings flashing all over her visor. With one final yell, she stopped the Plasma, stepping back from a now very malformed monster. She panted, her pent up fear and anger taking their toll on her.

She turned away from the Flood, bending a knee to grab John's hand. He took it, hoisting himself up with her assistance. She went to help Arbiter next, who seemed to have an injured arm, but shrugged her off when she tried to check it.

John coughed. "Thanks."

Samus chuckled. "I can't have you saving me, I don't buy that damsel in distress nonsense." She joked.

"All the same, you defeated the creature. You are a true warrior." Arbiter commented, flexing his arm, which seemed to be improving. The Alien bent down to retrieve his sword from where it had fallen.

A thud alerted them all, causing them to turn with weapons ready. The Flood monster had gotten back up, its body ruined and yet still able to stand. The Gravemind chuckled, though the sound was hideously distorted since Samus essentially blew the creatures head off.

"You cannot defeat me, I am I timeless curse." It said, a hint of pride in its voice. "Join with me, and assume victory, ever-"

A large blast of red light flew in from their left, piercing the creature. It fell down in a heap, unmoving. A large hole was now through its midsection, which blistered and boiled. A familiar voice chuckled through the radio.

"Kill steal" Johnson said humorously. Samus looked over to the cliff face she saw earlier to find him there, Spartan Laser in hand. He waved, which Samus returned, albeit halfheartedly. He made his way to the edge of the cliff, just short of making it to the roof where they stood. He fired the laser again, this time at the ground in front of him. The snow and ice collapsed, created a makeshift bridge to the roof. He walked over, smiling the whole time.

"I just saved your asses." He said, puffing out his chest.

Samus rolled her eyes. "No, you were right the first time, kill stealer." She muttered, though she couldn't help but smile. The Sargent always made her feel better.

His expression grew more serious. "We'd better get moving. Flood are coming up behind us as we speak." He said, a scream in the distance asserting his point. "Better open the door."

John shook his head. "We can't. Something else is keeping the door closed."

They were all surprised when a second later, the door hissed, and slid open. They all looked at each other, before another wail sounded out, much closer than before. They four moved in, entering a large hallway, winding into the mountain. They moved quickly, taking the turns and bends slowly in case of an unwanted surprise. But nothing waited for them in the silent corridors. Samus kept her guard up however, not wanting to be caught unawares by the Flood again.

They came to another door, which slid open when they reached it. Inside was a massive room, the ceiling hidden by shadow, and the floor in a similar fashion. A long bridge lay between the doorway and the center of the room, were a lone platform hung in the air. The platform was circular, with a massive hologram of the Halo ring in its center. A series of holographic controls and buttons sat under the hologram.

The Control room.

A Floods cry reached them, echoing from inside the recently silent hallway. Johnson tapped John, holding his hand out.

"I'll do the deed, you three should be ready for Flood." He volunteered. John hesitated, reluctantly removing Cortana's chip from the back of his helmet. Johnson frowned, his eyes unusually sad.

"I'm not gonna lose her too…" he said softly. Samus realized he meant Keyes, and she sighed. John handed the chip over, which Johnson took gently. He then began walking toward the controls. Samus looked back down the hallway, ready to protect Johnson and the key at all costs.

A sudden metallic humming caught her attention, and she looked up. A small blue light came out of the darkness, coming closer. She soon realized that it was Guilty Spark, and quickly relaxed. And then became puzzled. What was Spark doing here?

The little A.I flew right at Johnson, stopping just short of him and circling him while the Sargent walked. "Oh hello! Wonderful news! The installation is almost complete!" it beamed, as cheerful as ever.

Johnson cut it off almost immediately. "Terrific." He muttered, continuing to walk and ignore Spark.

Spark chuckled. "Yes, isn't it?" it said unusually. This caused Samus to turn her head. Something wasn't right here, she could feel it. But a very loud Flood scream caused her to return her attention to the hallway. Whatever Spark was doing, it could wait. She let the conversation fade out, and waited for the Ring to fire. A couple moments passed, and it didn't happen. She kept her eyes glued to the corridor but something was bothering her. What was Johnson waiting for?

A Scream shook her, except this time it came from inside the control room. And was undoubtedly human. She quickly spun, expecting the Flood to have snuck into the room. But what she found was much worse.

Johnson fell, his mouth still open as he screamed. Half his body was now covered in burns, and blood rushed out of him. Spark hovered above him, glowing red instead of blue. It gave him a much angrier vibe.

"Unacceptable…" it said quietly, before beginning to yell. "Absolutely unacceptable!" it then spun to face them. The door slammed shut behind them. Now Samus knew who was controlling the doors. But that was something she thought of in the back of her mind. Something else had her focus.

"Johnson!" She screamed, immediately rushing forward. She wasn't thinking, she just knew she needed to save her friend. Spark moved in between them.

"Protocol dictates action! I see now that helping you was wrong!" It yelled, before firing a blast of energy at her. She dodged, moving in close. But the A.I was clever, and instead flew into her. It impacted her in the gut, winding her. It didn't stop there, as it then pushed her toward the edge of the bridge. Samus struggled, but she couldn't get away. And with one last gasp, she felt the floor vanish and gravity begin to take her.

* * *

"Samus no!" John yelled, running forward. Spark had betrayed them, and had not only just injured Johnson, but potentially killed Samus as well. He'd watched as the A.I shoved her over the edge, watched her drop. His mind was still trying to process it, it had happened so fast.

Spark whirled toward him and fired, the energy red and angry. John was hit square in the chest and sent flying, his shields failing in a flash. He hit the flood hard, every bone in his body ached. Spark flew in for the kill, but was hot by several Plasma Rifle blasts. It looked up, spotting the Arbiter near the doorway. It fired, catching the Elite in the chest, and knocking him against the door. Arbiter's shields popped, and he hissed in pain.

John attempted to stand up, but Spark turned on him in an instant. Another quick burst send John to the floor again, his armor now sparking. He heard Cortana in his radio but her words were faded. All he could focus on was Spark, who now hovered in front of him.

The little A.I spoke, its tone once again calm. "You are the child of my makers, inheritor of all they left behind. You are Reclaimer." It said softly, before its tone changed once again to angry. "But this ring? It's mine!" It yelled, its eye charging up for another attack. John didn't have the strength to move, but he tried none the less. Spark began to fire, and John closed his eyes.

"Screw you, that hurt!" An angry Samus shouted. John opened his eyes and looked to his right. A battered Samus Aran came flying back over the top of the bridge, her grapple beam receding into her armored hand. She aimed her cannon and fired, missiles streaking for Spark. But they never reached him, instead spiraling away for exploding early. Spark whirled, moving right for her.

"You!" It screamed. "You are my maker's old enemy. I will take great enjoyment in dismantling you!"

It flew into her, knocking her into the floor of the bridge. She struggled back up, but Spark fired at her, a continuous stream of red energy. She raised an arm, trying to shield herself against the onslaught. Spark didn't let up.

"They told me about you! That you were the reason the Forerunners failed. How dare you step foot on this ring! My ring!" Spark screamed, moving slowly closer to Samus as it fired. Samus was now on her knees, her shields flashing red in protest to the attack. Then, John saw them begin to flicker. He remembered that her shields didn't charge as quickly as his, and that she'd taken a lot of damage from the Flood outside.

He saw her shields die.

She collapsed, unable to protect herself any longer. Spark never let up, his beam now landing directly on her armor. It began to glow from the heat, and he swore he heard Samus cry out. He struggled to his feet and took a step before falling again. His armor was flashing warnings but he didn't care. He couldn't let her die alone. He struggled on his hands and knees, slowly crawling toward them, each step agony.

A cough caught his attention. He locked down and realized he'd reached Johnson. The Sargent was definitely worse for wear, and John feared that he couldn't be saved. Johnson grunted, clearly in pain, and managed to roll himself slightly. His Spartan Laser fell to the ground from his shoulder. John looked from it to Johnson, and back again.

Johnson grunted, struggling to say something. "Kick…his…ass…" he uttered, before his eyes began to lull into his head. John grabbed the laser and hoisted it unto his shoulder. Every muscle he had screamed in protest but he ignored the pain, using it to focus himself. He aimed the laser right at Spark and began to charge.

Spark was now mere inches away from Samus's chest, the metal on her armor now molten orange. He could see even now, she still struggled. But it was no use, Spark had her pinned by his beam. John immediately tried to think of something Samus would say if their roles were reversed.

"Let's see how you like it…" he muttered. It would have to do.

He fired, the laser as red and angry as Sparks. The little A.I had no idea, and was taken completely by surprise when it connected with its spherical body. Spark was sent flying, colliding with the control console. It fell onto the floor, its body now had a large hole in it. It sparked and sizzled. To John's disbelief, it began to float up again.

"Oh no you don't…" he grunted, firing again.

This time Sparks' outer chassis was almost blown in half. It fell once again, its eye flashing and sparking. It began to rise once again, but fell a moment later. John watched the eye's flickers begin to slow, and then it spoke, one last time.

"Free…" It uttered, before its eye dulled, and did not light up again.

John let the laser fall of his shoulder. He tied to rise but failed, his body still protesting. An injured Arbiter came to stand beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"I will help her." He said. "You tend to the Sargent." He then continued forward, moving to assist Samus. Incredibly, she'd started getting back up, wobbly and looking sore, but otherwise fine. John turned his attention back to Johnson, whose breaths were now irregular. John knew, deep down, that nothing could be done, but he refused to accept it.

"I'm getting you out of here." He grunted, fighting back his own pain. He bent down to try and lift Johnson, but a hand came to rest on his.

Johnson shook his head faintly, his eyes struggling to stay open. "No…No you're…not." He breathed. He then grunted, looking John right in the eye. "Chief. Don't let…her go. Don't you…ever let her go."

At first John thought he meant Cortana, but he realized Johnson was moving his head slightly up, in Samus's direction. John wasn't sure what to make of this, but he hardly had the time to.

Johnson coughed violently, before taking one last breath. "Send me…out. With a bang…"

And then he was gone.

John could feel himself shaking, he didn't know what he was feeling. He felt sad, angry, and emotions he'd never felt before. He stared down into the Sergeants now vacant eyes, and suddenly felt the urge to yell. To roar, to let whatever higher power there might be know his pain. He heard Samus and the Arbiter move up beside him, and he heard Samus gasp. But he didn't care. He looked down into Johnson's hand, and realized he still clutched Cortana, protecting her until his dying breath. Like a true soldier.

John gently retrieved the chip, and rose. His body was still in pain, but that didn't matter to him anymore. He glanced and saw Samus kneel down, de-activating her helmet. A single tear rolled down her porcelain cheek, a gesture that only made John feel worse. She moved a hand over Johnsons face, gently closing his eyes.

"I'm sorry…" she whispered, no jokes.

John had had enough. He began moving toward to controls, each step less painful. When he reached the console, he inserted the chip and stood there, waiting. Cortana appeared, her face riddled with sadness.

"I'm so sorry, John…" She offered. John wasn't in the mood.

"Just activate it." He said, tone dead.

Cortana looked a little shocked, but nodded. She closed her eyes for a second, before looking back up at him. "It's done."

He retrieved the chip, and slowly turned to face the others. That was it, it was over now. All they had to do was leave the Halo before it fired. It wasn't a large window, but he was confident they could do it. He stared at the Arbiter, whose body was battered but his eyes were just as determined as when he first saw them back on earth. He looked down at Johnson's body, his friend for years. He had honestly thought Johnson would survive this war. He almost had.

He looked at Samus, her face somber but her blue eyes staring right back at him. She gave a slight nod, her helmet flashing as it activated again. John didn't return the nod.

He wished he could forget this moment.

Suddenly, the entire room shook violently. A loud rumble could be heard, and the floor beneath them began to tilt. John ran for the others, dodging pieces of the roof that fell down on top of him. The others began running as well, the trio bursting out of the room at the same time. John glances back and noticed Johnson's body slide off the edge of the bridge. He did say he wanted a bang, John noted grimly.

The continued running through the hallways. All around them, Flood and Forerunner sentinels were fighting, both sides ignoring the three intruders.

"Cortana, what's happening?" John asked, running around an exploding sentinel.

"I don't know! It's like the Halo is shaking itself to pieces!" She said, just as alarmed as he was.

"It is." Adam said, speaking up. "The Halo wasn't finished, and cannot contain the energy from the blast. I believe we only have roughly ten minutes before it's fully charged."

Samus grunted, jumping over a bulbous Flood. "Why didn't you say so sooner?!"

"I only just realized." Adam said, his tone calm. "But we need to move. Johnson landed the frigate on the other side of the canyon, we can make it if we hurry."

"Yes!" Cortana added. "The frigate, we still have a chance! But we need to hurry. Like, really hurry!"

"What do you think we're doing?" John asked, weaving past another exploding sentinel.

The trio made it back outside, immediately running across the snow bridge Johnson made earlier. All around them, the Flood and sentinels fought. As well as that, huge explosions could now be heard, and seen in the distance. It seemed the Halo was already beginning to fall apart. They ran across the narrow cliff face, the sounds of chaos all around them. John spotted the opening Johnson must have used to reach here, and pointed it out to the others. They ran right through, never slowing down.

Inside, Flood waited for them, but this time no sentinels were around to distract them. The screeched and rushed them. Samus can running up into the front of the group, cannon raised. She opened fire, literally. Fire spewed from the mouth of her cannon as she ran, scorching all that stood in front of her. They continued running, cutting a line through the Flood. Those that survived chased them, running to catch them from behind. They soon reached a ramp, with an opening at the end. Outside, John spotted a Warthog, probably Johnsons.

Even in death, he was helping them.

"In!" he ordered, diving into the driver's seat. Samus slid into the passenger side, while the Arbiter jumped onto the turret.

"Gun it Chief!" Cortana yelled. "Go go go!"

He keyed the ignition and slammed his foot on the pedal. The hog roared to life, just as the swarm of Flood surged out of the entryway. John peered at them from the rearview mirror. They attempted to chase after the faster vehicle, but never made it very far. The entire section that they'd been standing on exploded, and fel into a chasm below. John felt himself shiver, watching as the ground continued to be swallowed up slowly behind them. He pushed the jeep to its limits.

They rounded a bend, and John couldn't believe his eyes. All around them structures and mountains exploded, collapsing and sinking beneath the ground. John saw a road like path that winded throughout all of this chaos. And on the other side…

He spotted the frigate, the Forward unto Dawn. It hovered on the other side, the ground under it still stable. They didn't have long.

"Hold on, this is going to get rough." John told the others, and floored it. He tried to stick to the main path as closely as possible, but parts of it had already blown up, forcing him to take detours. Chunks of rock and metal rained from the sky, causing him to swerve, and nearly losing control of the Hog several times.

They raced through an artificial tunnel, the pillars holding the tunnel up bending and shaking as they fell apart. John drove, doing his best to dodge debris. A shard of metal flew through the windscreen, impacting into the seat near his head. He ignored it, focusing on dodging the bigger, more dangerous pieces. He peeked into the rearview mirror and was alarmed to notice the floor falling had caught up with them.

"Faster Spartan!" The Arbiter roared, looking back as the ground swallowed everything, and crept ever closer to them.

"It's at max speed!" He shouted back, trying to keep calm. It was now right behind the jeep, and John could feel the vehicle begin to shake as its back tires bumped into its edge. He looked up and realized they were almost out of the tunnel, and back into the open.

"Come on…come on…"

He felt his stomach rise as the Hog began to sink, just at the mouth of the exit. He clutched the wheel tight, refusing to look down. Samus suddenly jumped up in her seat.

"Hold on!" She shouted, aiming her cannon at the ground under the Jeep. John saw them begin to fall, watching as the ground in front of them began to rise. And then an almighty explosion sent the Hog flying up, and over the ledge, clearing the tunnel. John chanced a look at Samus, her cannon smoking. He silently thanked her for whatever she'd just done.

They continued to race across the open destruction. All around them, Halo destroyed itself. The sky was now red, and the metals had begun to heat up, causing Johns visor to fog up slightly. He swerved to avoid a Flood that had tried to run in front of the car, and watched as it instead fell into a hole in the floor. He looked ahead to find both Flood and sentinels all over the place, fighting and adding to the chaos.

He swerved and ducked to try and avoid them, but some of them took immediate noticed and opened fire. Both Samus and Arbiter opened fire, the chain gun ripping Flood to shreds in front of them, while Samus's beam weapons tore through sentinels all around them. He looked ahead, taking note of the many holes in the road and spotted the Dawn, much closer than before. For the first time, John didn't feel like they were fighting the inevitable.

He quickly swerved to dodge a huge chunk of Halo's ceiling that collided with the ground, causing it to sink. He kept his foot pressed to the pedal, not daring to slow down you anything. The Dawn loomed ahead of them, a straight run.

Cortana interrupted his concentration. "90% Chief, firing sequence initiated!" she informed him.

"Cutting it close John!" Samus yelled, firing at stray sentinels. He didn't reply, to busy focusing on driving.

He reached the final hundred meters between them and the Dawns hanger, when the floor in front of them collapsed. The floor under the Dawn vanished, leaving the Frigate floating in midair. The only part of road left was a naturally occurring ramp. He realized that it was their only option, and gunned it for the ramp. He felt the rear tires begin to bounce again.

"Spartan! The floor!" Arbiter roared.

He looked into the rear view mirror, and saw nothing. The entire section they had driven through was gone, and the floor they drove on was the last of it. He drove right up the ramp and over the edge, sending the Hog flying into the air. The ground gave out as they left the ground, and nothing now stood save the Dawn. The jeep flew through the air, and then began to fall. They all began to scream, and for a moment, John thought they wouldn't make it.

The Hog came crashing into the hanger, tumbling end over end. John lost his grip on the steering wheel and sent flying out of the Hog, crashing unto the metal floor. He groaned, struggling to stand up. He spotted Samus a few feet away, and the Arbiter slowly getting up a few feet from her. An explosion rocked the Dawn, making it tilt slightly. John stabilized himself, but heard the Arbiter gasp. He looked up.

A tank had dislodged itself from its holdings, and was now flying right for him. Elites were tough, but nobody could survive that. John rose to help his friend, but Samus beat him to it. She shot up from her position on the floor, and dived at him, barging him out of the way, and saving both of them. She helped him back up, then whirled to John.

"Come on! Start the ship!" She screamed urgently. John quickly ran to a nearby console and inserted Cortana. He felt the ship start a moment later.

"Everyone hold on!" She said, as the ship began a sharp ascent. John saw the Arbiter turn and move further into the ship. Samus stood by the doorway and waited for him. John took one last look back.

They had left the Halo's atmosphere quickly, and the scene below them was someone like an abstract painting. The Halo, and the Ark, flared bright oranges and reds, in the contrast of the blues, purples and blacks of space. John turned to move up the hanger, but lost his footing. He slipped momentarily.

That's when the tank hit him.

He lost his footing completely, tumbling toward the hanger door. Cortana called his name and watched helplessly as he flew toward the entrance. He tried to grab something, anything to hang onto, but nothing would hold. He felt himself leave the ship, and move into open space.

An unarmored hand grabbed his, and halted his momentum. He came to a stop, dangling in open space, and looked up. Samus, in her zero suit, had jumped out after him, and was holding onto him with one hand. She held onto the edge of the hanger with another, and was the only thing stopping John from falling back onto Halo. Her teeth her bared, as she struggled to hold onto his heavy body. She grunted, slowly but surely pulling him closer to her. With effort, she managed to place his hand on the edge she was hanging onto.

"Grab it you oversized tinman!" She shouted, her arms starting to wobble. John secured his grip on the edge, pulling himself up. Samus pulled herself up easily, sighing in relief. She sat on the floor, looking up at John. "You need to lose weight."

John chuckled, he couldn't help it. Samus must have been starting to rub off on him. "Perhaps." He replied simply.

Samus rolled her eyes and smiled up at him, accepting the hand he offered. She continued smiling at him, and under his helmet, he smiled back. "We made it huh?" She said, not really a question.

He nodded. "Seems so. Guess we'll have to take some RnR when we get back."

She chuckled. "Or we could continue our spar. I was about to win after all." She joked, her blue eyes seeming to twinkle. She chuckled again before turning and making her way toward the door the Arbiter went through earlier. "I'm gonna go check Thel isn't about to blow us all up."

John watched her leave, not even questioning who Thel was. His body suddenly ached, and he felt just how tired he'd really been. He went to go sit by the console Cortana was in, and collapsed. It felt like years since he'd been able to just sit, and not worry. He tilted his head to watch the Halo explode in the distance. If John didn't know any better, he'd say it was beautiful.

Cortana chimed in. "If we don't make it…" She began, but John interrupted her, not wanting to hear it.

"We'll make it."

She was silent for a moment. John felt his eyelids begin to flutter, as he fought in vain to stay awake. Just as he began to slip into sleep, he heard Cortana's voice. Or was it Samus's? He couldn't tell.

"It's been an honor serving with you John…"

And then everything went white.


	12. Epilogue

Epilogue

"For us, the storm has passed. The war, is over." A tired looking lord Hood said somberly. "But let us never forget those who journeyed into the howling dark…and did not return."

Hood looked like he'd seen better days. Rings sat under his eyes, and stress wrinkles made him appear older than he actually was. But it was his eyes that were most notable. They appeared dull, lifeless. Samus noticed all of these things and more as she stood with the small group, gathered on a hillside, surrounded by the open African plains. She was in her Zero suit, feeling that armor was not right for this occasion. She felt the wind brush her hair, a usually relaxing feeling, but today it was anything but. Beside her stood Thel, the Arbiter, as well as a small gathering of soldiers. She shifted her gaze toward the monument that the Admiral stood before. It was nothing more than the wing off a Pelican, and yet its significance was much more.

Names, photos and letters were all attached to the monument, stuck on with tape or just laid on the ground around it. Samus glanced at the photos, like she had so many times since coming here. Many of them, she didn't recognize, but a few she did. The marine, Carmine. The red squad soldiers. Miranda Keyes.

Avery Johnson.

She swallowed, unable to tear her eyes away from the photo. In it, the Sargent was smiling. It was a better final image than the one she remembered. His body burnt, his grimace of pain…

Samus couldn't bear the thought, which caused her pain in her chest. She turned her attention back to lord Hood, in an effort to try and focus on something else.

"For their sacrifice required courage beyond measure." He said, his words ringing loud and clear, though his face looked like he just wanted to stop talking. "Sacrifice, and an unshakable conviction that their fight, our fight, was elsewhere."

Thel sighed beside her. Even he seemed saddened by the speech. He glanced her way, his mandibles clasped tight. She looked at him, once again going over the memories that had led them here.

She had left the hanger on the Dawn to go check on Thel, quickly navigating the corridors of the ship. She'd been feeling ecstatic, relieved. They had destroyed the Flood, and survived. The Covenant was all but gone, and nothing more threatened humanity. She'd smiled as she thought of what she could do next, her first genuine smile since waking up.

Then everything had gone white.

She couldn't comprehend what had happened at the time, but she realized soon after that the ship had been cut in half, the portal home closing with the Dawn only half way through. Samus had been on the Forward half, along with Thel, which plummeted down to Earth and crashed in the ocean. The other half…

Samus instantly stopped thinking about it, skipping forward a few hours. They had crashed, and had waited for 30 minutes before rescue came for them. The both of them had been taken to a nearby UNSC base on the coasts of Africa, were interviewed and debriefed, and were giving some time to recover. That had been two days ago, and the whole time Samus had been dreading this day. The memorial, to those lost in the war. Because despite everything, the deaths, losing friends, there was one thing she just couldn't accept.

She couldn't help it, having resist the urge since she arrived. Her eyes slowly moved, turning her gaze toward one of the 'tributes' on the memorial. This one was unique in that it wasn't a picture, or a name. In fact, rather than being on paper, it was carved into the metal itself. She had never called him by his designation, but she'd heard it enough times to know who it was for.

117

The number repeated in her head like a mantra, and she fought the urge to lash out and strike someone. It made her feel angry, sad, and a range of other emotions all at once. But most importantly, she felt like it wasn't true. It couldn't be true. From what she'd seen, he couldn't die. It was like fate was on his side. He couldn't just vanish like that…

"As we start to rebuild, this hillside will remain barren…a memorial to heroes fallen." Hood continued, his words snapping Samus back into reality. "They ennobled all of us. And they shall not be forgotten."

He took a deep breath, then gave a nod to the soldiers. The men all raised their rifles into the sky, and fired a short burst, a tribute. The sounds were dulled to Samus. What did they matter? Wouldn't bring anyone back from the dead.

Thel tapped her, startling her out of her thoughts yet again. He gave her a nod, then tilted his head toward the Admiral, who now had his back turned to them, staring at the memorial. He started walking toward him, Samus following after a hesitant moment. She wasn't sure she wanted to speak to the man, to hear what he had to say. More importantly, if he brought up working for him, or asking to examine her tech, she felt the day would end with more death.

Hood didn't turn, but he must have heard them, for his next words were quieter, and directed at Thel. "I remember how this war started, what your kind did to mine. I can never forgive you, but…"

He turned then, looking into the aliens eyes for a tense second, before he slowly extended his hand. Thel gazed down at the hand, raising his own just as slowly, the two eventually meeting and shaking loosely.

"You have my thanks. For standing by him till the end…it's hard to believe he'd dead."

There it was again. Another indicator that he was dead. And yet, she just couldn't accept it. Wouldn't. He was alive, he had to be. She knew it.

Thel sighed, his gaze shifting to look down at Samus. "Were it so easy…"

The alien then gazed up to the skies, where the Shadow of Intent hung in the sky, waiting for him. The Elites would return home after today, to Sanghelios. They just waited on their Arbiter now. Thel sighed again, looking down at Samus again. "Are you sure you do not wish to accompany me? You would be an honored guest in my home."

Samus smiled, though she knew it didn't reach her eyes. "No, it's ok. I'll see you around friend."

His eyes tightened slightly, but he nodded. He gave another nod to Hood, and then he turned and left, heading for a Phantom on a distant hillside. Beside it was her Hunter Gunship, which she'd flown here herself. Samus watched the Phantom rise, growing smaller as it ascended toward the Intent. Within moments, they were gone, and with it, Samus felt her last friend leave.

She looked back to the memorial, and realized it was now just her and Hood present, the soldiers departing earlier. Nothing was said between the two for what seemed like hours, the silence just as bad as the words earlier.

"Whatever you want to ask, just ask it. I'm tired of waiting." She finally said, her tone sharp and dangerous. She was not in a mood for games.

Hood didn't reply right away. "I told you at the start of all this that you would be free to go. I stand by my word Samus, you are in charge of your own destiny. What you do from here, is up to you."

The silence resumed, and as Samus looked down at the names and faces of the fallen, she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

She looked at Hood, her features softening slightly. "So I'm free huh? Free to do what I wish?"

Hood looked at her, expression unreadable. "I had hoped you would want to help the UNSC still, after the time you spent with…But yes, you can do what you wish…"He looked behind them, toward the distant Gunship. His eyes tightened. "Tell me, what are you going to do now?"

She wanted to chuckle, the way she usually would. But she just couldn't bring herself to do it. "You haven't already guessed?"

"I have. But Samus…you know the odds right? The chances of finding him…let alone if he's-"

"I know!" She shouted, causing the Admiral to jump. She sighed. "I know…"

She turned to look at him face on, her wall collapsing slightly. She felt a tear fall down her cheek. "But he can't just be left to drift in space. One way or another, I will find him…and bring him back."

Hood watched the tear fall, his own face softening. He looked into her eyes and for the briefest of moments, she was reminded of Admiral Adam. "Well, I wish you all the best Samus. And remember, the UNSC will always be your allies, as long as I am in charge. Do not hesitate to call upon me if you need to."

He extended a hand, which Samus grabbed gently, the two shaking hands slowly. He let go, before giving her a salute. She returned the gesture, and then turned to her ship. She glanced over her shoulder at Hood as she walked, but he had returned to staring at the monument, the proud man now looking a lot older then when she'd first met him.

She made it to her Gunship, stepping into the entry hatch under the ship, and waited for it to retract inside. She immediately made her way to the pilot's chair, typing in commands. A small holomap appeared on the ships windscreen, which Samus gazed at. It featured worlds and systems she'd learnt of since working with the UNSC, and others that they would have no idea existed. It was a big Galaxy…

"Do you have a course in mind, lady?" Adam asked, appearing on the dash. She gave him a brief smile and shook her head.

"Not yet, I just want to get out of here…" She muttered.

He nodded, his expression, usually neutral, sad. He vanished, and she felt the ship begin to start up. The quiet hum, and very faint vibrations. It comforted her slightly. As the ship began to lift off, and looked down at the monument one last time. Ever from this far away, she felt like she could see his number like it was right in front of her.

"I'm coming John…"

"John! Wake up!"

Chief felt his body slowly come too. His eyes opened groggily, and he reached for a handhold to stand with. When he couldn't find one, he realized he wasn't laying down, but floating in the air.

"What happened?" He asked, voice rough. How long had he been out?"

Cortana hesitated before elaborating. "When Halo fired, it shook itself to pieces. Did a number on the Ark. The portal couldn't sustain itself. We made it through just as it collapsed…"

John looked behind him, and took a breath. Behind them was nothing. Half the ship was missing, and the vastness of space stared back at him.

"Well…some of us made it."

He sighed, he understood. They were stuck in uncharted space, with no way of contacting the UNSC. He gazed around, noticing lights still flickering.

"Cortana, does the ship still have power?"

"Yes, though it's limited. I could pool resources to power one or two things for an extended time. Why?" She asked, sounding curious and doubtful.

He didn't answer, instead pushing himself off a wall and moving himself deeper into the ship. He winded through corridors, avoiding bits of debris floating due to no gravity. He made his way to the Cryo chamber, and as they entered Cortana understood. She sighed.

"I can drop a beacon, but it could take a while before anyone finds us…years even." She said, pausing. John began to climb into the tube, stopping only to shelve his rifle on a nearby rack. As the pod closed he thought he'd heard her take a deep breath.

"I'll miss you…"

He felt the effect of the Cryo tube taking effect, and he fought to tell her something comforting. But his brain was shutting down.

"Wake me…when you need me." He managed.

She seemed startled, before laughing lightly. John looked at her as his eyes began to droop. And as he passed out, his final thought was about her.

About the woman in blue.

* * *

**And that my lovely readers is it for this story. I really hoped you enjoyed the ride, and do hope you will fav/review it if you did. **

**I will soon be posting the beginnings of the next story, Halo 4:Past is Prologue, so keep your eyes keen if you wish to see the story continued. Otherwise, thank you so much for reading! Until next time.**


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